Stevenage Tomorrow and Catching Up

Hello folks.

Gordon has set out for Stevenage this morning and Sandra and her husband are going to help him set up.

I cant go as i have to be at home this weekend for various reasons (all will be revealed soon i promise ).

It has been a very busy time for us all in Once Upon A Stamp land with so much going on its like being on a roller coaster.

The No More Shims Mat has really taken off in the U.S.A and Canada and now the Stay Put Mat is on its way over.

The workshops at the shop are going so very well and are all mostly full before we get chance to put them on the blog, Please give us a ring to see what we have available.

We are pleased to say thaat we now have the multi talented Mixed Media and Stamp Artiste Claire Towle ( who used to have the Card Fairy ) joining us every few weeks to do some wonderful full day Workshops.

The last two have been sold out before we have had time to announce them as everyone knows how fantastic Claires classes are.

I am doing some design work at the moment for some new products which i hope will get your crafting juices going.

We hope to launch these products on CREATE and CRAFT late September or Early October and we are all really excited about it here.

So that is what is taking most of my time up at the moment as these products have to be up to my standard and be really versatil too.

In between all this we are in the middle of something else which is really exciting for us and i will share this with you as soon as i can.

Gordon continues to go from strength to strength and we are all so proud of him.

I have been Nicotine free for nearly five months now and still dont want another cigarette EVER.

And Harry is getting all excited because his best friend Bob comes to stay next week for two whole weeks YAY.

Will post again in the week to let you know how Stevenage went.

Love and Smiles Rob Gordon and Harry xxx

Cooling down but still HOT

Saturday was another day up in the 90s so we decided to do something indoors again.

We went to the Field Natural History Museum and again the place was so big and so interesting we were there until 5.00.

It did get scary towards the end of the day in there as we started to walk through hall after hall of stuffed animals from all over the world and we couldnt find an exit.

It started to get really freaky when you passed people you had passed 10 minutes earlier and they couldnt find a way out either.

In the end there must have been about 12 of us all staying in a group and laughing nervously trying to find a way out but not doing too well.

Eventually just passed molluscs of Australasia and Dung Beetles of North Africa we found the all importantant Exit sign and everyone gave a big cheer.

Came back to the hotel where we heard the sad news of Amy Winehouse.

I think everyone knew her life would end tragically and too early but i hope her spirit is at peace now and her songs will always be played.

We didnt do much just went for dinner and then had a night watching American TV or should i say adverts and then fell asleep.

Today has been a lot cooler so we have been out hitting the shops and going to different neighbourhoods to have a nosey around. I have bought some craft books and art materials that i cant get at home and Gordon has bought some shoes and jeans.

THis evening we went down to the Navy Pier and had dinner at Bubba Gumps and then went and watched the last ever Harry Potter Movie in 3D on an Imax screen ( Fabulous )

Yes i shed a tear at the end and thought the whole film was brilliant.

Got back to the hotel at around 12.00 am and have got everything packed and ready so we can have a last look around Chicago in the morning and then we will make our way to the airport around mid day.

Have had a great time but cant wait to get home to our little Harry and find out whats been happening at home.

Cant put any photos up as i have packed the cameras away but will post some when we get back.

Thanks for dropping by

Love and Smiles Rob and Gordon xxx

Some like it HOT

It is really really HOT here in Chicago with warnings of not to go out if you can possibly help it and if you do to use high factor sunscreen and drink plenty of fluids.

Thursday was 101 degrees so we decided to go to the Planetarium as i have never been to one and Gordon says this is one of the best in the world.

I thought i would be bored but found it all fascinating and loved the three dimensional films and how our universe came about.

It was 5.00 pm when we came out and i couldnt believe we had spent a whole day in there but the time did go so quickly.

After a quick look round the shops and a bite to eat we went on an Architectural boat tour along the Chicago river ( it was 8.00 pm so no worries of getting sunburned ) with a lovely lady telling you about the history of Chicago and about all its famous skyscrapers and buildings.

It was 9.30 when we finally came back to shore and after a stroll around the Magnificent mile we came back to the hotel and had an early night.

Friday was in the high 90s so we went to the Chicago Art Institute as we both wanted to go here and it would be nice and cool with the air conditioning on.

Again A full day of taking in the arts from the pre raphaelites right up to the modern arts of today by the time we had looked around at all the fantastic art it was 5.00 pm again before we decided to go back to the hotel and rest our legs for a while.

Later we went for dinner and a walk down to the Navy Pier and then went to a late night movie showing of Transformers 3 in 3D.

Why did we go and see this you may be asking ???

Well last year when we were here we actually watched some of this being filmed along the Chicago river so when we saw it was actually being shown we just had to see it and i must admit we really enjoyed it.

When we came out of the cinema at just gone midnight the sky was full of lightning and just as we reached our hotel the heavens opened and i have never heard such loud thunder in my life.

We sat up in our room 18 floors up with a coffee watching the fantastic light and noise show for well over an hour before we went to bed with lightning still lighting the room and thunder still gently rolling in the distance.

I will leave you with a little video i took of the Chicago Skyline on Thursday and will write again tomorrow as i am so tired right now and must get some sleep.

Love and smiles Rob and Gordon xxx

Hello From Chicago

Yes i know

One minute we are saying hello to you at the Summer Crafting show at Doncaster and then we had to zoom off to Chicago for the Summer CHA show to promote the No More Shims Mat to our friends across the pond.

We arrived in Chicago on Monday afternoon and at the moment they are having a freaky heatwave with temperatures into the high 90,s and even up to 101 degrees yesterday pheweee.

Tuesday and Wednesday saw us on Diana and Roys Scor-pal stand promoting the No More Shims Mat.

It was great seeing Diana and Roy again and we all had a real good time and we got lots of interest and orders for the No More Shims and lots of interest for some of our other products too which Diana and Roy will hopefully be taking on board for us.

We met some absolutely wonderful people at the show and want to thank you for your kind words and interest in our products.

We also want to thank Diana and Roy for giving us the chance to promote our products on their stand and also for being our distributors across the pond.

Heres a pic of Myself ,Diana, Roy, Gordon and Sheila just before we said so long on Wednesday

evening .

Thanks for a wonderful two days guys and we will see you again in Anaheim next year xxx.

On Wednesday evening after something to eat we just fell asleep for around 12 hours as i think time caught up with us.

I will write later on today about what we have done since the show as Gordon is getting itchy feet to go somewhere.

Now where is that sun screen

Smiles and love from Rob and Gordon xxx

All Ready For Doncaster Show

Hello everyone.

Hope you all enjoyed the videos Gordon and i have made for the No More Shims Mat and if there are any more things you would like us to try just let us know and we will do a video.

We have just finished setting up for tomorrows stamping show at the Doncaster Dome and Gordon, Karen and Michelle will be there to help you and show you some of the latest tricks and techniques with our products.

I am real busy at the moment working on my projects for college and when they are finished i will put some pics up to show you how i am getting on.

I have not had a cigarette now for just over 11 weeks and must admit have found it a lot easier than previous attempts i just need to work out a way to lose the excess weight that has appeared since stopping ( diet will start when i am ready as i can only cope with stopping one thing at a time )

Its been a bit of a sad couple of weeks too as my uncle passed away and my sister in laws father was found dead on the day of my uncles funeral and he was a fit 66 year old , so not a nice time really at the moment.

The garden is also keeping me busy as many of you know i absolutely love my garden and am sooooo happy with it this year as Gordon and i have transformed the front and the part next to the kitchen over the last couple of months and i keep having to go and have a look even when its dark haha.

Tomorrow i will be picking the first of our Strawberry's and will make something nice with them for when Gord comes home from Doncaster.

If you come to Donnie tomorrow please say hello and if you liked the videos please send in some comments as we have had none on the blog for them yet.

Going to close now and thanks for dropping by.

Love and smiles Rob, Gordon and Harry xxx

Embossing Fresh Leaves with No More Shims Embossing Mat &the Big Shot

Embossing Dried Leaves with the No More Shims Embossing Mat and the Cutt...

Using Lace Mesh Hessian etc with No More Shims Cuttlebug & Big Shot

Flattening 6 Bottlecaps using Sizzix Big Shot and No More Shims

Flattening 6 Bottlecaps With No More Shims And The Cuttlebug

No More Shims Mat With Big Shot Impressabilities And Plastic Stencils

Hope You Like The Videos

Hi everyone.

I havnt blogged for ages so Gordon and i thought it would be a nice idea to do some No More Shims videos on the Cuttlebug and the Big Shot so that you can see how well it works on both machines.

The first three are an introduction to the mat and then basic embossing with a nestabilities die on both machines.

Tell all your American friends that they will soon be able to buy it too as Diana and Roy Crick who own Scor-Pal are going to launch it over there in the next few weeks and we are all really excited about it.

Tomorrow i will put a couple more videos up one showing how to use your impressabilies with the No More Shims and another using the plastic stencils.

Gordon and Jean would like to say a big hello and thank you to all the people who came and said hi and bought things from our stand at Port Sunlight just over a week ago.

Thanks for popping by

Love and smiles Rob Gordon and Harry xxx

Using The No More Shims Mat with Nestabilities and the Sizzix Big Shot

Using The No More Shims Mat With Nestabilities And The Cuttlebug