News

It's been a little while between posts, so i'll catch you up on what's been happening around here.

Firstly, we have said farewell to Cathy this month. You would know Cathy from her regular weekly posts and her quote of the week.

As they say, one door closes another one opens - and that's where I get to introduce you to our newest team member - Karen. Karen has been scrapping for about 10 years and hosts the Scrapchat forum. She is a passionate scrapper and a very friendly lady who we hope you will pop in and meet soon.

Apart from scrapping and working, I have had a busy month with relo's visiting from Sydney. My Dad turned the big 6-0 a couple of weeks ago and he came for a visit with my mum and brother. We spoilt him with game fishing, teppanyaki at the Marriott, Gold Class cinema tickets and other such fun experiences....just what every Dad deserves right.

I have also been busy chasing Roxi around the place. She has taken off at a mad pace. Unfortunately that means she is into everything and especially loves playing with doors and drawers and chasing our dogs!

All the new Basic Grey ranges have come in this week. There is something for everybody here! I just can't decide which range is my favourite, here's a little taste of the yummy Urban Prairie:





You can check out the whole shebang in the shop or on the Basic Grey website: www.basicgrey.com

"Everything is okay in the end, if it's not ok, then it's not the end."

- Unknown

Photography Workshop

Hi Everyone

My husband and I are celebrating our 11th year Wedding Anniversary tomorrow. 11 years and 2 kids later where has the time gone.... Did you know 11 years is STEEL I think a Pandora Bracelet comes into that, don't you? LOL..

We have an exciting month happening here at Seriously Scrapbooks. Rachael Richter is our special guest this month, she will teaching a Photography Course. WOW
this girl has real talent just amazing work!!!

If you have wanted to learn more about taking photos of the special people in your life then this is the class for you. Rachael will take you through the theory then it's time to play during the practical! You can bring a favourite object to practise with if you like. Weather permitting, we'll also do an outdoor shoot. This class goes for 3 hours and costs $60.

To look at Rachaels work click on link http://www.rachelrichter.blogspot.com/ or for more info on the class you can check out: www.pointshootplay.com.au

This is a class not to be missed and is filling fast. To secure your spot email us on scraps@serioulsyscrapbooks.com.au or call us on 07 55 727277.

Have a fabulous weekend and remember to smile.

Cathy:)

What's New

Hi Everyone

We are back and ready to go!!! We have been busy unpacking all our new goodies for you all to see. Come on into the shop girls, and have a look at what's new.

But of course being the nice girls we are, we will give you all peeks of what is HOT!!

Click on all the links below and you all can see the new:

Jenni Bowlin "Victoria" range (beautiful)

Pink Paislee "Pop Fashion" range (my fav)

Rose Moka "Appel de la Nature" range (funky)

http://www.seriouslyscrapbooks.com.au/whatshot9.htm
http://www.seriouslyscrapbooks.com.au/whatshot13.htm
http://www.seriouslyscrapbooks.com.au/whatshot14.htm
http://www.seriouslyscrapbooks.com.au/whatshot10.htm

A layout from Rose Moka "Appel de la Nature"



A Layout from Jenni Bowlin "Victoria"



Have great weekend and remember to laugh!

Cathy:)

Wednesday Wonderings - 13.08.08 - Part 1

Well I have dropped off the face of the earth for a little while but I am back.

I have recently been thinking about stepping outside my comfort zone so to speak and thinking of trying a new style. I am inspired by so many scrappers out there that it is hard to want to decide which style to try first.

I am particularly inspired by the following people:

Ingvild - http://ingvild-bolme.blogspot.com/
Zarah - http://zarischka2.blogspot.com/
Jolene - http://jolenepienaar.blogspot.com/
Julie - http://julieheard.typepad.com/random_thoughts_ofa_heard/

So my goal this week is to try and scrap a page in similar style to each of these lovely ladies.

I will share the results next week.

Classes Classes Classes

Step 3

Step 2

Step 1

Embossing Tips & Techniques

Hi Ladies

School was back for me last week, can you believe my kids had 3 weeks off!!
We went to Sydney OMG was it cold, we took the kids to Luna Park my husband and I have a new name for it "Lunatic Park" he he.


I am going to give you some tips and techniques on "Embossing"

Heat Embossing, is done by stamping an image on a piece of paper (Versamark inkpad is the best for embossing, Versamark inkpad is clear and sticky so your powder will stick to your stamped image), sprinkling embossing powder over the stamped image and applying heat.
Sprinkle a generous amount of embossing powder over your image, then pour the excess off the design. The design should be completely covered in the powder, make sure there is no more powder anywhere else on the project, use a dry paint brush to get rid of any unwanted powder. Apply heat to the design which will melt the powder and form your raised design. The easiest way to do this is with a heat gun. Do not use a hair dryer as this will blow away the powder.


TIPS:
* Make embossing powder adhere better to metallic and shiny surfaces by first gently by gently rubbing items such as eyelets with steel wool or a light sandpaper.
* You can save a lot of embossing powder by catching the excess with scrap paper and replacing it in the jar. By saving the excess like this your jar will last for ages.
* When you're embossing a paper lighter weight than cardstock, back it with a piece of cardstock. This prevents it from warping while being heated.
*Before you heat the image look for any powder that may be anywhere else on the paper and by using a dry paintbrush, brush it a way, as this can spoil your project.
* When using your heat gun don't get too close to your project as it can burn, about 5 - 10cm in close enough. Have a play and stamp images on scraps before you attempt to do a image on a layout or card.
*Only use a heat designed for embossing. Your friends may be using irons, light bulbs and even toasters; but these can be dangerous and can even cause burns. Investing in the right tools ensures not only that you get the best results, but also ensures your safety.


We will be running classes in August that will be using embossing, so if the technique appeals to you book into one of our classes. You can call us on 55 727277 or browse our website for our August timetable www.seriouslyscrapbooks.com.au


We will announcing our winner of our Comment Competition next week, so, if you have'nt left a comment make sure you do and you will be in the running for a cool prize.

I am going to leave you with a quote of the week:

What you are will show in what you do. -Thomas Edison

Have a fantastic weekend!!

Cathy:)

Wednesday Wonderings - 08.07.08

Well I am just scraping in for Wednesday. I have been super busy for the last few weeks but I am back.

This week I wanted to talk about adding dimensional interest to your pages. Dimensional Interest can be added in numerous ways. Think of the following things when trying to add interest to your layouts and projects.

- Use an edge distressor. This simple little tool can a shabby look to your pages in seconds. Simply drag it along the edge of your paper until you have achieved the desired look.

- Stitching. Break out the needle and thread and add a gorgeous finish to your page. Thread comes in so many different colours, it would be hard not to find a match for your layout.

- Paint. Splash or stamp a bit of paint here and there can easily fill spaces which might have been 'dead' otherwise.

- Stamping. Stamps come in a multitude of designs. Want to make a flourish pop? Stamp another one underneath your embellie and add some kindy glitz. Instant dimension.

- Ink. This medium can be used in multiple ways. From adding a dash around the edge of your papers, to brushing it on like paint to fill 'dead' spaces, to using it to alter chipboard etc to suit your layout. Ink also comes in tonnes of colours so you are sure to find one which compliments your layouts.

All of these little things can help add dimensional interest to your page. Why not give one (or even a few) a go and share your layout links here with us.

My favourite product this week

Last time I blogged we shared some ways on using Dimensional Magic. I thought I might keep my ideas flowing and talk about using "MASKS".


What are Masks?
Masks are shapes or letters which have been cut out of thin black flexible plastic and are stuck to a laminated white sheet. The masks have a repositonable adhesive on the back so that they can be used over and over again.

Masks are designed as the opposite of a stencil. Instead of colouring in the shape itself, you colour over the top of the mask and then remove it. What you end up with is a negative image, where the area surrounding the masks shape defines it.




We have these masks pictured above in store now so come in and check them out.

How do you use them?
Put your mask down on your base of choice then ink, paint around the mask. Lift the mask carefully with a craft knife and see your design.

Using masks gives a very artsy look to any scrapbooking page or art project with little effort.

Mediums you can use when masking:
*Acrylic Paint
*Inks
*Chalk
*Pencils

You are not limited to only using these mediums GO CRAZY and try whatever you can come up with.







TIPS:
Press all edges of the mask down really well before applying your medium, otherwise you could have seepage. This could cause loss af adhesive backing and effect the pattern of the mask. Masks can be cleaned with baby wipes.


My Quote of the week:
"Come live in my heart, and pay no rent" Samuel Lover

Just makes me wanna cry:) Well girls I'm off on holidays with hubby and the kids for a week or so to Sydney. Will talk when I get back.

Cathy:)

Product of the week

Hi Everyone

Have'nt the weeks gone by so quick! Did you know there is
only 6 months and 4 day till christmas!!! (thought you might like to know that!)

This week I am going to talk about a loved product by me "Dimensional Magic"....






I am going to give you a few ideas on ways to use this fantastic product. If there are any other ways I have not mentioned to use Dimensional Magic you can share them with us and leave a comment.

* To add shine - Light coat spread over embellishment/ or brushed on with paint brush
* Add thick shine - Pierce bottle tip with needle and it will flow out quite thick let dry overnight this adds dimension and hightlights. (TIP - keep needle close by bubbles may appear pierce with needle if this happens).
* Dimensional Magic is great to use as a glue fo heavier objects eg- Metal, large buttons etc.
* Place small dots of DM on petals of flowers to make it look like rain /dew drops. tried it and it looks great!
* Use DM on chipboard - Paint or cover chipboard then with DM when still wet sprinkle Micro Beads or glitter over top.
* It can also give a gel sticker like appearance to many paper embellishents/flat stickers then use foam dots behind them to make them 3D.


Ladies, we need your comments!! Take a couple of minutes to leave a brief message and don't forget we are going to ramdomly select a comment soon and that person will win a "MASSIVE" prize pack.


I am going to leave you with a quote of the week - "A Daddy is a man who has a photo in his wallet where his money used to be". Unknown

Have a great weekend!!

Cathy:)

Look What's Coming!!!!!

Hi Ladies
What an awesome week I've had, because I get to see what's new and what's coming to our shop! Exciting news!!!

Our favourite punches the " Whale of a Punch" are going to be coming out with new shapes and sizes. These guys are getting huge... all the way to 3"!!!

OMG these are a must have. Don't worry girls, I will share some pics, but I have to rave about them first. he he

Our favourite circle punch now has 2 new sizes 2 3/4" and 3" so easy to use and still the most heavy duty punch you will get.

Circle Scallop Punch - 1 1/4", 1 1/2", 2" (these are on my list to have. Yes, all 3)

Square Scallop Punch - 1 1/4", 1 1/2" (tooo cute)

Heart, Star, Retro Flower, Flower Punch - 2 3/4"

Square Punch - 3" OMG (Got to have it in my stash!!)





These guys are available from early August.

We will keep you informed with arrival dates and pricing and how to pre order etc, via our newsletter, so sign up now if you are not already a member! Go to the link below:

http://www.seriouslyscrapbooks.com.au/

My quote of the week:

Sisters are different flowers from the same garden
unknown

Have a great weekend everyone, I know I will, we have no kids all weekend... ahhh Bliss

Cathy:)

My Favourite Things....

Hi Ladies

It's that time of the week again when I love to rave about something NEW!!!

And these new ranges are worth raving about.

Here are some pics of the new K & Co Range: Seaglass

Great for travel or the beach..................

The new Blue Awning Rage by K & Co-

This is my personal fav....

We have papers and all embellishments in both ranges in store now so be quick they are running out the door.

I would like to leave you with this very gooey quote.

" Once upon a time right in the middle of an ordinary life, love gives us a fairytale"

Have a great long weekend and happy scrapping.

Cathy:)

The SLICE...we love it!

Making Memories have a new cutting system...The Slice!

It is being demonstrated in Australia for the first time this weekend at the Scrapbook & Papercraft Convention in Brisbane. You can go and check it out at the Printblocks stand or check out this online demo:

http://www.youtube.com/v/nfubyLuekZE&hl=en

The machines will be available in about August or September and will cost $225. The machine comes with everything you will need to get started including a design card that has 3 different fonts, a big selection of shapes, frames, punctuation and tags and several common words.

This is definately going on my Christmas List!

We are taking pre-orders for this hot little cutter now. You will need to leave a $50 deposit and then you can either pay it off in installments or just pay it off when it arrives. If you pre-order in June you will be guaranteed to get the machine in the first shipment.

Shoot us an email scraps@seriouslyscrapbooks.com.au if you want some more info. We can email you a brochure with more details and images of the different design cards available - They are gorgeous!

Call 07 55727277 or email if you would like to pre-order this fantastic new machine today!

Have your say!

People, we need your comments!!!

It only takes a couple of minutes to leave a brief message and don't forget that we are going to randomly select a comment soon and that person will win a MASSIVE prize pack!

Photoshop Classes

We held our first Photoshop classes on the weekend and they were fantastic!

A big THANK YOU to the girls from Point Shoot Play, who came down from Brissy to show us just how fantastic our photos can really be! The classes were very easy to follow and because they are hands on everyone found it easy to learn and a lot of fun!

The PSP girls will be a regular fixture at Seriously Scrapbooks over the coming months, but unfortunately we can only fit in a couple of classes a month and numbers are limited to 10 per class, so definately book in early if you are interested!!!

If you normally just take a photo, print it and scrap it then the Photoshop Basics 101 class is for you. You will learn how to convert photos to black & white or sepia, how to remove blemishes and wrinkles! and how to change most of a photo to black & white but keep some part in colour....now i'm sure you've all seen photos like this....where the gorgeous child is black & white with stunning big blue eyes or where the cheeks are just left a little pink etc. Or what about those photos that are just perfect - except for the stranger in the background or part of an arm or leg here and there....well just get rid of them! You will be amazed at how fabulous your photos can be and how easy it is!

Permission To Play is the intermediate level class. You will learn more about layers and selection tools. You will learn to move images between photos so if for example you want to add Uncle Joey to your family portrait, you can just add him in! You will also learn how to add decorative titles and text to your photos and how to install and use new brushes so that you can get really creative!

In July we will also be running a Photo Rescue class for your old or damaged photos and a Scrappy Divas class which will teach you more about fun effects that you can add to your photos like crowns, fairy wings etc among other thing. For more info on these classes check out the Point Shoot Play website.

Hi Ladies

Time to pull out those winter woolies over the next couple of months, or you can come to Seriously Scrapbooks for a class we will warm you up with stitching, embossing, sanding and lots more to get you moving......

I would like to share some new products we have in the shop.

Clear Scraps, Acrylic albums in all shapes and designs, small acrylic stars, tags and too many more to mention but here's a couple of pics:

Acrylic Album Acrylic Shapes

A2Z Scraplets, great chipboard words, acrylic words, acrylic and chipboard frames sooo easy to cover, paint, ink, emboss the possiblities are endless.

Here's a peek:

Acrylic Words Acrylic Frame Chipboard Words

We are running a class on Sunday 15th June on the Acrylic frame @ 10.30am. The frame comes in friends, family or if you would like to you can have you own word on top eg: your family name, childs name. If you would like a personalised frame you will have to contact us at the shop 55727277 next week so we can book you in and order you frame for your class.

Well that's all from me. Have a great weekend snuggle up with your favourite Scrap Mag and lots of hot chockie. yummm!!!!

Cathy:)

Wednesday Wonderings - 28.05.08

Welcome to another Wednesday.

This week I thought I would give you a little bit of sketchy inspiration. This one is perfect for using multiple 6 x 4 photos on a layout without it looking too overpowering.

This is my example.

I would love to see your layout using my sketch so why not pop a post in the comments section for me to take a look.

Have a great week.

Cathy's Product of the Week

Hi Everyone, my name is Cathy and I have been

working at Seriously Scrapbooks for the last 2 and a

bit years. I am a mum to Zack 10 and Jessica 6, married 11 years

and also a domestic engineer(that job feels like 4 eva LOL).

This is my first go at blogging and I have to say

was a little scared and excited!!!!......

Well, I want to share a great new product that has hit our

shelves it is the Bazzill Stitches Templates, each pack has 4

reusable templates in lots of different themes.

Just a pic or two of how they look and how our talented teacher

Trish has used them.

We have a great range in the shop so come and have

a look before they walk out the door.

Have a great weekend!!!!

Cathy:)

ps: let me know how my first post went......

Wednesday Wonderings 21.05.08

Ok so I totally missed yesterday as for some reason I think today is Wednesday.

My inspiration this week is making the most out of your patterned paper supplies. For these examples I have used 4 different patterned papers and 2 pieces of die cut cardstock all available from Bella Boys 2 Men range and available in store now.

I created these 4 layouts and only had a very small piece of one of the papers left. All have their own unique looks which means you really can get the most out of your patterned paper instead of letting it sit in your scraps box.

For a closer look at these layouts, pop into the store as they will be on display shortly. :)

What's new this week!

We have just received a new shipment

of gorgeous chipboard and acrylic

titles...actually, I am just pricing them now

and it's a case of one for sale...one for me!!!

These are just a few, but there are HEAPS more!

You can paint them, ink them, emboss them,

cover them in patterned paper or just leave them.

They are much thicker and a nicer quality

than the ones we have had in the past.

AND you can even get some personalised

ones like the name flourish above!

They are the perfect touch to any page and

I am sure you will love them as much as I do!

Wednesday's Wonderings - 14.05.08

Welcome to my first Wednesday's Wonderings. I look forward to bringing you tid bits of information and inspiration each week.

This week I thought I would share a little idea with you.

Have you ever thought of using non-scrapping related items on your layouts? It is a topic that has been discussed in the mags quite a bit lately and recently I thought I would give it a go myself.

I was cleaning out some of my DS toy packaging and came across this netting which I thought would make the perfect bow accent on this layout.

I was also opening some of my scrap supplies when inside the Basic Grey chipboard album, I found this beautiful printed card which I thought would work great as a patterned paper.

Look for inspiration in things such as bread ties or clips, chocolate wrappers, packaging from your scrap supplies or ring pulls from cans.

I would love to see what you create so make a comment with a link to your layout so I can check them out.

Have a great week.

Happy Mother's Day

It's Mother's Day tomorrow...

so Happy Mother's Day

to all the wonderful mother's out there!

All the girls at Seriously Scrapbooks

are Mother's and it's my first Mother's Day

so that is extra exciting for me!

The shop will be closed tomorrow,

so we'll catch you again next week!

Here we go again!

Welcome to the new and (hopefully) improved blog for Seriously Scrapbooks!

I was very lazy with the last one...probably something to do with being a busy new mum trying to "do it all"...that hasn't changed, but anyway I promise to try to be better this time around!

And this time we are going to have some regular help from the Captivating Cathy, Terrific Trish, Jovial June and Super Sara!

So stay tuned and have some serious fun with us!

Christie x