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You’re Invited!

To celebrate the January New Release from Kaszazz I am having a open house on Saturday the 30^th of January from 10am – 3pm and I would love to see you there.  I have lots planned so it will be a fantastic day full of new products, prizes, treats, freebies and fun. Bring a friend or three and take some time out for yourself!

FREE Make and Take Demo ~ at 10.30am and 1pm I will be demonstrating new products & projects and you will get the opportunity to make a project to take home for free

Free Gift ~ to thank you for coming everyone who attends will receive a gift on arrival

Prizes ~ there will be 4 lucky door prizes valued from $35 to $50 given away during the course of the day

Mega Prize ~ place an order of $35 or more and be in the running to win a $200 prize pack (including brand new products)

Early Bird Prize ~ RSVP early (before the 18^th Jan) to go into the draw to win a prize pack worth over $35

Refreshments ~ Tea, coffee and yummy treats provided

Catalogues & Flyers ~ Kaszazz has a brand new catalogue out so grab yours on the day for the discounted price of $4.00 (or free if your order is $100 or more).  The new January flyer will also be available for purchase

Sound like fun?  RSVP by Jan 24^th via email or be in the early bird draw and RSVP by the 18^th!

krismarr(at)iprimus(dot)com(dot)au

Can you believe it?  Only four sleeps to go!  I can honestly say that I am pretty much organised, I only need to do one small grocery shop for fresh fruit and veggies and that’s it.  Are you all organised or do you think you’ll be doing a mad dash to the shops at the last minute?  If so I wish you luck!!!

I just wanted to wish you all a very merry Christmas or just a happy time if you celebrate something else.  As the days get busier I don’t know when I will be able to post next so I’ll sign off now for a wee little break.  I’ll try to post after Christmas but if not it will be after New Years.

I’ve also made an executive decision (pretty easy to do when you’re the boss) that I will start running workshops from home in February as I know most of us are pretty flat out in Jan especially those of us with kids on school holidays!  I will however be having a FREE Make and Take Demo on the last weekend of January to showcase the brand new products in the Jan release.  Make sure to mark it in your diary, I’m thinking Saturday the 30th from 10-2pm.  You don’t have to come for the whole day (but you are more than welcome to!) but I will ask for RSVP’s so I can organise gifts and prizes for all those attending.

I will put up a special post with all the details very soon as well as letting all customers on my mailing list know.  If you’d like to join the mailing list simply drop me a line at krismarr(at)iprimus(dot)com(dot)au – minus the brackets of course!

Well happy holidays folks, I hope you can find some quiet time for yourself to just sit, relax and reflect on this past year and dream about the possibilities for 2010!  Best wishes and warm hugs dear readers, thank you for your comments and support.

xox

Kris

I just wanted to share some of my favorites from etsy.  I recently bought some sweet kawaii (Japanese for cute) papergoods and I am currently champing at the bit for my 2010 fabric covered diary to arrive in the post!

Love who you are deer moleskin notebook  by Mullberry Muse.

Sterling Silver Cuckoo Clock charm by Silver Clouds.

100 Yards Bakers Twine by Lemons and Lollis.

Destination – Anywhere but here, Envelopes by Scrible Shop.

Scrabble tile pendant Bird Nest by The Pendant Factory.

Unfortunately I was unable to get the high tech listy thing to work so I just used the ole cut and paste technique!

Do you have etsy faves?  Do share them with us!  I love finding more goodies to lust after by browsing someone’s faves, post your link in the comments below.

Kris

I’m very excited about this coming new year… a fresh start… a blank canvas and so on.  I’ve decided to run workshops from home again and it’s going to be a little different this time.  I will still be teaching Kaszazz workshops but I’ll also be featuring some of my own brand new workshops!  I can’t wait to share my creations with you.

As a customer attending a workshop in my “home studio” you will get access to special privileges and discounts.  I will also be holding regular FREE Make and Take Demonstrations with prizes and giveaways.  Stay tuned as I’ll post the workshop timetable on my blog very soon as well as send it out to my customers via email.  If you’re from the Shepparton area and would like to join my mailing list feel free to drop me a line at krismarr(at)iprimus(dot)com(dot)au so you don’t miss out on the latest news!

In mid January Kaszazz are holding their National Team Training Days in various locations around the country where they will reveal all the new products they are releasing.  I’m really looking forward to it, it will be like Christmas all over again ha ha!  If anyone is interested in learning a bit more about what we do as consultants you are most welcome to attend the NTTD.  There is a small fee of $35 which covers the two brand new workshops we will be doing on the day.  Our group will be holding their NTTD in Bendigo and the RSVP date is basically as-soon-as-possible!  For more info drop me a line on the above email address.

To coincide with the New Product Release I will be holding a FREE Make and Take Demonstration at home on the last weekend of January.  Date and time will be advised soon so check back for more details.  Remember if you are on my mailing list this info will be sent straight to your inbox!

Happy scrappin’

Kris

If you’re feeling a bit down in the dumps today then looking at these cards will surely perk you up!  They are bright, fun and totally awesome.  At our last Kaszazz monthly meeting we made these cards which were featured in Australian Cardmaking, Stamping and Papercraft.  I’m pretty sure they are by a Kaszazz consultant as all the products used were Kaszazz.  When I get hold of her name I will put it on this post.  EDIT:: Michelle Smith designed these cards and they have been submitted to Kaszazz hurrah!

Don’t they look fantastic?  It’s great to see people being brave and injecting bright colours into their creations.  These cards use a technique that is just as fun trying out as the end result.  We used paint dabbers and mini misters to achieve our “splats” and the images were coloured in with aqua colour crayons.  I hope this makes into the Kaszazz workshops as I know lots of ladies would love to try it out.

Time for a poll…

Have a great day craftsters

Kris

Hiya folks

I finally started making my Christmas cards!  Yes I know I really need to hustle my butt and make more so I can get them posted in time but I wanted to show you what I’ve created so far.

I decided to use up this tan cardstock as it was part of Kaszazz’s Heritage pack that has now been discontinued.  At first I really didn’t know what to do to make this colour work for Christmas but a little gold embossing powder and ta-da!  Embossing really does work wonders and can be used with any colours or stamps designs.  And there is just so many combinations you can create like using coloured embossing powder with a clear ink like perfect medium or using a clear ep on a coloured pigment ink for a totally different look.

I’ve used some frayed burlap distress ink on the edges to soften the starkness of the ivory card and I applied some in the middle too using my ink blending tool.

These two tag ornaments were created for my handmade ornament swap I hosted on swap-bot.  I took the lead from the scallop ornaments I’d made earlier on.  I am loving the distress crackle paint at the moment.  I had quite a few tubs left from my prize at conference back in March so it was great to finally be able to put them to use.

Oh and here’s a great tip for anyone out there with gluggy, dried up tubs of crackle paint: grab a wooden stick (paddle pop style) and add a couple drops of water to your tub and get whippy.  Mix, mix, mix ’til your paint comes back to life.  Make sure to only start with a few drops of water at a time – you don’t want it too thin.  I did this to all my tubs even the ones I thought were destined for the rubbish bin and now they are smooth and lovely once again.

If you need some more ideas for Christmas cards have a look here, here and here!  Oh and I’ve finally started adding photos to my Flickr account so feel free to take a peek.

Kris

Hi I just wanted to quickly let you know that if you were a fan of Lucy Stamps you can now get your “old favorites”  from Kaszazz!

There is a special section on our website where you can view them and check the price.  Then all you need to do is ring me with the code and I can order it for you.

Kaszazz have also decided that they will never delete a stamp totally; if it disappears from the current catalog you will still be able to see it in the “Old Favorites” section on the website and order it from your local Kaszazz consultant!  How great is that?

So hop along to the old favorites section and take a peek at the great stamps available.

cheers!!!

Kris

I wanted to share some decorations I made recently.  I had a lot of fun doing these and am rather chuffed with how they came out.  I took some inspiration from Naomi Elliot who featured a Christmas decoration made from the Kaszazz chipboard scallop.  I actually loathed these scallops when they came out as I thought they were pretty useless but now I will eat my words…I love them!  And now I have lots of ideas on how to use them.  Isn’t it funny, sometimes you just need to see something through another persons eyes.

This one I made for my Mum as her favorite colour is blue (sorry for the bluryness).  I love this and am thinking I need to make another one for me to keep!

This shabby chic style pink ornament is the first one I made and I will keep for myself.  I’m thinking of hanging it on the front door perhaps instead of the tradtional wreath, it’s looks nice there!  I love how the black takes the pink from girly girl to classic.

This last one I made in traditional Christmas colours and I am sending it to a swap-bot friend.  The colour is a bit off as I took the photo inside at night

I used all Kaszazz products for these including the new Christmas stamps, design adhesives, glitter, embossing powders, distress crackle paint and distress ink.  I love them all and only wish I had time to make more before the big day!  I’d love to know what you think of my ornaments, so…

So how is your Christmas decorating going?  Do you put up a tree and lights?  Have you made any of your own decorations this year?  I plan on putting our tree up in the next few days as I want to be able to enjoy it for longer this year!  I am also thinking of whipping up some scrapbook paper garlands as they appear to be rather easy…I’ll let you know how that goes ha ha!

cheerio

Kris

Hello folks

Today I thought I’d share some of my lovely loot from the swaps I have been taking part in on swap-bot.  I’ve been swapping postcards; Christmas cards; stickers; buttons and ribbons; pen pal letters, scrapbooking items and lots more.  I am really enjoying this and I’ve (virtually) met some really genuine and generous people through swapping.

There’s a fantastic group of Aussie Swapper on swap-bot who hold a monthly wish list where you get to post what you wish for and you can grant wishes in turn.  It just makes my day to come home to a lil’ surprise in the letter box.  I also love posting things out for people too, makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside!  I’m also in an international wish list group too.

So here is a photo of some of the cool stuff I’ve received so far…

This is what one international wish list member sent me…isn’t this generous?  I was so excited when I saw all these goodies!  Have you picked up that I love Emily the Strange?

And here is something I sent out for a swap called try something new.  It’s a little birdie stuffie which I hand sewed as I was too scared of the sewing machine ha ha. It’s not perfect but I still think he’s cute.  My swap partner named him “Cluck”.

Well I’d best be off as I have a few more pen pal letters to write.

Ciao

Kris

Hi groovy peeps!

It seems I just cannot get enough hours in the day to do everything I want; either I need to start prioritising and dropping things that aren’t important or I need to get super efficient and organised.  Maybe a bit of from each column.

I did get very carried away with playing games on Facebook (farmville, cafe world, island paradise etc) which seemed to suck a lot of my time – I think if I were to play similar games on the Playstation (like sims) it would be less demanding as once you turn it off it stops whereas the Facebook games continue whether you’re logged on or not!  Does anyone else feel chained to their cafe or farm ha ha?  So really when I think about how important those games are to me……well it’s probably best to give them the boot!

What else has been filling my hours?  Well when I first joined swap-bot I was swapping like crazy and that was getting a bit out of hand so I’ve decided to slow down and only sign up for or host really good swaps that focus on things I really care about like crafting and so on.  I think that will make me much happier.

I’ve also taken November and December as active leave from Kaszazz so I don’t have to do any workshops or demo’s to retain my benefits.  This should be giving me heaps more time but so far I can’t find any!

I really don’t want to give up blogging but I realise that I need to commit to more posts if I want anyone to hang around and keep on reading.  This is something I must work on because I do love to blog!

Ahhhh what a conundrum to be in.  I’m sure most people feel they could do with a few more hours in the day.  What would you do if you had oh say and extra 2 hours a day up your sleeve?  And if you’ve got any tips for getting things done and how to prevent getting side tracked I would love to hear them please!

So apart from being a very wordy post today I did want to let you know that I have been crafting – yes, yes I have!  I’ve been working on some Christmas decorations; some for my swap-bot swap, some for me and a very pretty creation for my mum.  I’ve been having a lot of fun making these and trying out different techniques and styles.  They are almost all finished so I’ll be able to put some photos up very soon.  Also craft related; I once again have cleaned up my studio.  It was getting to the stage where the spare bed had become another dumping ground for papers, boxes and craft bits and pieces and the floorspace was shrinking before my very eyes!  I do try to be an organised person but usually things get out of hand and stay that way for longer than I’d like to admit.  I must say that this cleaning and tidying effort was spurred only the impeding visit of my dear mum …I didn’t think she’d appreciate having to heave a heap of junk off her bed before retiring for the night!  It’s mum’s birthday this week so we are planning to have a girls day out, shopping, lunch and perhaps a movie too.  I haven’t seen mum for a while so I am really looking forward to it.

Oh and Paperific went well!  My feet were ready to drop off by the end of the day but we had some lovely ladies stop in and visit.  And my wallet did not suffer too much, I was very good.  I also have a new recruit!!!  Hooorahhh.  A very nice lady in Warnambool has decided to join Kaszazz.  I am slightly excited by the prospect of a mini holiday to go see her hee hee.

Now I should mention a new goal of mine…it’s rather huge and I’m a bit scared to put it in writing but after going to Paperific and my big clean up in the studio I have come to the conclusion that I am a hoarder.  Eeeek I said it, phew that is hard to admit.  You see I have a strange addiction, I buy supplies and then cannot bring myself to use them for various reasons; some being they are too pretty (?) they are too good for any project I happen to be working on (!) or I am scared to use them because I may never get them again (what the?!?).  Now I do realise how silly this is, especially when I do a lot of crafts for myself which means I would still “own” these supplies and be able to look at them anytime I wanted.  So I am putting my foot down.  No more purchasing of supplies until I use most of what I have.  One of my friends kindly pointed out to me that if I didn’t use up my supplies they would become dated and there is always nice new shiny things to buy so I don’t really need to hang onto them so desperately.  There are some exceptions to this new rule of mine…I can still buy Kaszazz supplies for workshops and I can also buy myself new Kaszazz products with vouchers I have earned and of course I am allowed to buy adhesives.  That’s it.  No spending of cold card cash or cold hard plastic anymore lol!

So do you think I can do it?  Something seriously needed to be done as I could open a shop with all the supplies I own.  I tried to explain this weird addiction/obsession of mine to James and he finally “got” it when I showed him all the unopened reels of ribbon I had in the cupboard.  It really was becoming ridiculous.  Anyway that’s my goal and I’ll be uploading photos of all my creations using up my stash, I might even put a special tag on them so we can see just how many things I can make without buying anything.  This is the biggest challenge ever and I’m kind of looking forward to it!

Okay folks thanks for letting me bend your ear, so to speak, and don’t forget to share those organisational tips please!

hugs and more hugs

Kris