Christmas Countdown | Chocolate Truffle Boxes with Year of Cheer from Stampin’ Up!

Chocolate Truffle box using Year of Cheer from Stampin' Up!

Christmas Countdown Video Tutorial Series StampinByHannah Stampin' Up! UKOh my goodness, we are already nearing the end of September which means that it must be time to start my fabulous Christmas Countdown series for 2017! Now, I did do something similar to this last year, but this year I have a bit of a twist…. in that most of the projects in this series involve food (although there are a few exceptions!). As a total foodie and a bit of a secret baker, I thought this would be the perfect way to combine two of my passions!

Chocolate Truffle box using Year of Cheer from Stampin' Up!

Shall we look at the papercraft first? This fabulously sized box would be great for a host of things…. but I have chosen to put Chocolate, Rum and Coffee Truffles in mine (more on those in a minute!). This box is 4 x 4″ square and 1 1/2″ deep (or 10 x 10 x 4 cm if your a metric person!) and uses the GORGEOUS Year of Cheer Designer Series Paper. Seriously, this paper is beautiful! It features one of this seasons hot treads…. mixed metals, combining Gold, Silver, Copper and the brand new Champagne foil sheets.

Measurements:

Base – Crumb Cake Card Stock – 7 x 7″ (18 x 18 cm)

Score on each side at 1 1/2″ (4 cm)

Lid – Year of Cheer Designer Series Paper – 6 1/16 x 6 1/16″ (15.2 x 15.2 cm)

Score on each side at 1″ (2.5 cm)

Chocolate Truffle box using Year of Cheer from Stampin' Up!

These fabulous boxes also use the super pretty Foil Snowflakes (loving these… they are finding their way onto a LOT of projects at the moment!), and the Merry Little Labels bundle. Check the bottom of this blog post for a full list of products used, but first….. some chocolate!

How to make Chocolate truffles

These wonderfully rich creations are super quick and easy to make… although they do need some chilling time… and would be a great gift!

The original recipe for these came from HERE, although my version is a little different

Ingredients:

  • 250g Milk Chocolate
  • 75ml Double Cream
  • 2 tbsp Dark Rum
  • 1 tbsp instant coffee granules
  • 200g milk / white chocolate for the coating

Method:

  1. Line a flat bottomed tin with greaseproof paper (I use a plastic sandwich box) and break the chocolate into small pieces
  2. Heat the cream, rum and coffee granules in a small saucepan over a low heat, stirring until the coffee has dissolved and the cream is beginning to bubble around the edges
  3. Remove from the heat and add the chocolate, stir until the chocolate has melted, and you have a smooth mixture.
  4. Pour this into your tin / box / container and allow them to cool and chill for a few hours until fully set.
  5. Cover a tray with greaseproof paper. Remove the mixture from the tin and cut into 24 pieces. Roll each piece into a ball and place on the tray. Pop them back into the fridge.
  6. Melt two thirds of the remaining chocolate over a pan. Remove from the heat and add the rest of the chocolate and stir until it has all melted.
  7. Dip each truffle ball into the melted chocolate one at a time, ensuring each is completely covered before placing it back into the tray. This part is quite messy!
  8. Once each truffle is coated you can add final decoration… I prefer to flick melted white chocolate across mine, but you could coat in cocoa powder

My husband LOVES these…. they don’t usually get as far as being packaging into such a pretty box though!

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Hannah McCurley

Stampin’ Up! UK Independent Demonstrator

DIY Designer Series Paper with Good Tidings

Creating your own Designer Series Paper using Good Tidings from Stampin' Up!

I love finding different ways to use my stamps…. and one of the techniques I don’t do nearly enough is creating my own Designer Series Paper using stamps! I love doing this kind of repetitive stamping, creating something unique each time, and a truly hand made creation!
Handmade Christmas card with DIY Designer Series Paper with Good Tidings from Stampin' Up!

This card features the Good Tidings stamp set (I am totally in LOVE with this one!). This awesome stamp set creates two sizes of holly sprigs with some 2-step stamping. Did you see THIS card I made with this stamp set last week. I am also using a different colour combination from the traditional Christmas…. although I wasn’t sure that it was going to work when I first started stamping! The leaves are in Old Olive and Tranquil Tide, and the berries are Rich Razzleberry and Fresh Fig.

Creating your own Designer Series Paper using Good Tidings from Stampin' Up!

This rich colour combo is set against Early Espresso for a classic styled Christmas Card. The sentiment is also taken from Good Tidings, and is stamped in Tranquil Tidy, die cut with the Layered Circles framelits and layered with a scalloped circle of Early Espresso.

Thanks so much for check out my blog today. Check out my store to buy everything you need to make this pretty Christmas Card, and sign up to my email newsletter using the link in the sidebar!


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To purchase any of the items featured in my projects please use the links above. To join my team of Stampin’ Friends select ‘Join My Team’ or send me a message!

Please support StampinByHannah, and enter my Code Club Code. For orders of over £150 please do not use this code, as you are entitled to your own Hostess benefits!

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Hannah McCurley

Stampin’ Up! UK Independent Demonstrator

Painted Harvest for Christmas

Christmas Wreath Card using Painted Harvest from Stampin' Up!

Last weekend I had a fabulous Catalogue Launch party over on my Facebook page. I love holding this type of event, we have loads of fun, with games, crafty samples and inspiration! I thought I would share one of the cards I made for my launch party with you today!

I was lucky enough to be able to place a good sized pre-order of Stampin’ goodies during August… and one of the stamp sets I knew I just had to have was Painted Harvest. This fun autumn stamp set features a gorgeous Sunflower, along with some lovely Thankful sentiments…. oh and it coordinates with the most lovely Leaf punch too!

Christmas Wreath Card using Painted Harvest from Stampin' Up!The Sunflower stamp became a Christmas wreath for this card; stamped in Pear Pizzazz and Old Olive. I added a trio of Real Red ‘berries; too, just to add to the wreath effect. The sentiment is taken from Snowflake Sentiments, and is stamped in Sahara Sand…. the same as the wreath centre (yes I know that wreaths don’t usually have centres….. call it creative stamping!). The card is finished with some dots of Fine Tip Glue.

Thanks for stopping by StampinByHannah today. You can find links to all the products used in this card below, along with a direct link to my shop.


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Shop Stampin' Up! UK Teesside North East Stockton on Tees

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To purchase any of the items featured in my projects please use the links above. To join my team of Stampin’ Friends select ‘Join My Team’ or send me a message!

Please support StampinByHannah, and enter my Code Club Code. For orders of over £150 please do not use this code, as you are entitled to your own Hostess benefits!

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Hannah McCurley

Stampin’ Up! UK Independent Demonstrator

Make It Monday | Good Tidings Catalogue Cards

Make it Monday Christmas Card video tutorial using Good Tidings from Stampin' Up!

Make It Monday

I have some very special cards to share with you today. I made a heap of these to send out with my Autumn Winter Catalogues (if you haven’t seen the new catalogue, you can find a link in the side bar…). I love this stamp set…. and I am sure I will be sharing heaps more projects with this one really soon!

Make it Monday Christmas Card video tutorial using Good Tidings from Stampin' Up!

I loved making these…. I grabbed my stamps and inks a couple of weeks ago and stamped a bunch of these on my knee whilst watching a movie with James. The Good Tidings stamp set features one of my absolute favourite stamping techniques… 2 Step stamping, to make this stunning holly. The stamps line up so easily, and actually even if the stamps are not lined up exactly it doesn’t matter, its still pretty!

The leaves are stamped in Old Olive and Garden Green, while the berries are Real Red and Cherry Cobbler. I die cut the square of Whisper White first, along with the scalloped square of Cherry Cobbler using the Layering Square Framelits.

The sentiment is stamped in Basic Black and is taken from Cheers to the Year.

Make it Monday Christmas Card video tutorial using Good Tidings from Stampin' Up!I also LOVE the Designer Series Paper featured on this card…. its called Merry Music Specialty Designer Series Paper, its a little thinner than the usual Designer Series Paper but its so pretty.

Stampin up Autumn Winter Designer Series Paper shares


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To purchase any of the items featured in my projects please use the links above. To join my team of Stampin’ Friends select ‘Join My Team’ or send me a message!

Please support StampinByHannah, and enter my Code Club Code. For orders of over £150 please do not use this code, as you are entitled to your own Hostess benefits!

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Hannah McCurley

Stampin’ Up! UK Independent Demonstrator

Seasons Greetings….

Cheers to the Year Seasons Greetings Christmas Card using Stampin' Up! products

Ooooh, I am super excited! The Stampin’ Up! Autumn / Winter catalogue launches TOMORROW!!! Eeek…. it is SO good! and I cannot wait to share it all with you! Today’s project is a little bit of a sneak peak of what is to come…. as well as a CASE of THIS card by Dawn Griffith.

Cheers to the Year Seasons Greetings Christmas Card using Stampin' Up! products

I have mentioned before about how I am not a massive fan of your traditional Christmas red and green. This card is testament to that with Powder Pink and Fresh Fig, with touches of Gold…. but it still manages to be festive!

The card base and top layer are in Powder Pink and have been embossed using Petal Burst Embossing Folder. While the rest of the card uses new products from the Autumn / Winter catalogue. The sentiment is called Cheers to the Year, and it is designed as a New Year suite… but it has some great sentiments perfect for Christmas and even weddings too! The sentiment is heat embossed in Gold, with stamping around it in Fresh Fig. Then I have used my favourite Layering Circles dies to cut out the sentiment. The card is then finished with one of the stunning Foil Snowflakes!

Measurements:

Card Base – 14.8 x 21 cm, scored on the long side at 10.5 cm

Fresh Fig layer – 12.8 x 8.3 cm

Powder Pink Layer – 12.3 x 7.8 cm


Product List


Shop Stampin' Up! UK Teesside North East Stockton on Tees

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To purchase any of the items featured in my projects please use the links above. To join my team of Stampin’ Friends select ‘Join My Team’ or send me a message!

Please support StampinByHannah, and enter my Code Club Code. For orders of over £150 please do not use this code, as you are entitled to your own Hostess benefits!

Sign up to my newsletter here – http://eepurl.com/2if59

Hannah McCurley

Stampin’ Up! UK Independent Demonstrator

Carols of Christmas | Non-traditional

Non traditional Christmas Card using Carols of Christmas from Stampin' Up!

I think I mentioned on Monday’s post that I tend to steer away from the classic Red, Green and Gold at Christmas, and today’s card is much more up my Christmas alley! This card is a CASE (Copy and Selectively Edit) of THIS card by the lovely Dani Dziama….. I was totally struck by the Colour Combination and that sheet music background stamp (which I love…. but somehow hadn’t paired it with Carols of Christmas!)

Non traditional Christmas Card using Carols of Christmas from Stampin' Up!

I love the effect given by using Stampin’ Write Markers on a sentiment like this…. being able to get different colours for different words. There are several tricks to colouring your stamps with marker:

  1. Use the brush tip, on it’s side…
  2. apply LOTS of ink to prevent lines appearing on your stamped image
  3. breath on it before you stamp to re-activate any ink that might have dried

The background is that lovely Sheet Music stamp, stamped in Smoky Slate onto Whisper White card stock…. but there might be a stamp free way to get a similar look very soon……. 😀

Peace on Earth Non Traditional Christmas Colours Christmas Card using Carols of Christmas from Stampin' Up!

The card is finished with some Berry Burst ribbon and a trio of Metallic Enamel Dots… oh and that layer of Silver Glimmer Paper!


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Shop Stampin' Up! UK Teesside North East Stockton on Tees

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To purchase any of the items featured in my projects please use the links above. To join my team of Stampin’ Friends select ‘Join My Team’ or send me a message!

Please support StampinByHannah, and enter my Code Club Code. For orders of over £150 please do not use this code, as you are entitled to your own Hostess benefits!

Sign up to my newsletter here – http://eepurl.com/2if59

Hannah McCurley

Stampin’ Up! UK Independent Demonstrator

Carols Of Christmas | Pootlers Video Hop!

Hello…. welcome to StampinByHannah, if you haven’t been here before! Today I have a special something to share….actually I had several things to share.

Firstly; today is the 1st of August…. which means that this morning I will be placing my Pre-Order for Christmas goodies from the Autumn/Winter Stampin’ Up! catalogue!!!!! Yay!

There is a fabulous Customer offer launching today too…. Carols of Christmas is a fabulous new Bundle and a sneak peak of the new Autumn/Winter catalogue!

AND then there is our fabulous Pootlers Team Video Hop… today a group of 12 fabulous Stampin’ Up! demonstrators are sharing 12 wonderful video Tutorials using the new Christmas bundle. You can see my video below, but please do click through to YouTube to see the other ladies do their stuff!

I am totally in love with the new Christmas goodies… this stamp set is literally just the tip of the iceberg!


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Shop Stampin' Up! UK Teesside North East Stockton on Tees

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To purchase any of the items featured in my projects please use the links above. To join my team of Stampin’ Friends select ‘Join My Team’ or send me a message!

Please support StampinByHannah, and enter my Code Club Code. For orders of over £150 please do not use this code, as you are entitled to your own Hostess benefits!

Sign up to my newsletter here – http://eepurl.com/2if59

Hannah McCurley

Stampin’ Up! UK Independent Demonstrator

12 Days of Christmas | Merry Christmas Everyone!

Merry Christmas!

12 days of Christmas with StampinByHannah Independent Stampin' Up! UK Demonstrator

Yes, I know this is day 13, but I couldn’t not wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a fabulous New Year too!

I’m going to take a few days off to celebrate with my family, but I will be back on the 1st January with some exciting sneak peaks of all the new goodies coming on the 4th! I you haven’t got a catalogue you can sign up for a FREE copy HERE, and find out more about my 2016 Birthday Card Club and Online Card Classes and Events HERE!


Giftaway: Place your order between now and midnight on the 26th December to get a FREE roll of Copper Metallic Thread (my favourite goody from this year!)

Copper Metallic Thread 12 Days of Christmas Giftaway


Shop Now button-001join Stampin' Up! Uk

To purchase any of the items featured in my projects please use the links above. To join my team of Stampin’ Friends select ‘Join My Team’ or send me a message!

Please support StampinByHannah, and join my Code Club, by using the Hostess code featured in the top right hand of my blog. For orders of over £150 please do not use this code, as you are entitled to your own Hostess benefits!

Sign up to my newsletter here – http://eepurl.com/2if59

Hannah McCurley

Stampin’ Up! UK Independent Demonstrator

12 Days of Christmas | Minty Pocket Bag

12 Days of Christmas Minty Designer Series Paper Pocket bag video tutorial table favours using DSP from Stampin' Up! UK

12 days of Christmas with StampinByHannah Independent Stampin' Up! UK Demonstrator

Oh my goodness, I cannot believe we are finally nearing the end of 12 Days of Christmas! and this is my last crafty video of the year! I hope you have enjoyed this 12 days of videos as much as I have, and if there is something else you would like to see, let me know, and I might even do it all over again!

12 Days of Christmas Minty Designer Series Paper Pocket bag video tutorial table favours using DSP from Stampin' Up! UK

These cute little bags (I think they look like draw string pocket because of the closure) are totally inspired by my Friend Sam and one of her lovely projects. Check out me making them in the video below!

Yep, ribbon and twine and me are still not friends, but I am still trying!

Measurements:

Designer Series Paper – 8 1/4 x 4″ (22 x 10 cm)

Score on the long side at 2, 4, 6, and 8″ (5, 10, 15, and 20 cm)

Score on the short side at 2″ (5 cm)


Giftaway: Place your order between now and midnight on the 26th December to get a FREE roll of Copper Metallic Thread (my favourite goody from this year!)

Copper Metallic Thread 12 Days of Christmas Giftaway


Product List


Shop Now button-001join Stampin' Up! Uk

To purchase any of the items featured in my projects please use the links above. To join my team of Stampin’ Friends select ‘Join My Team’ or send me a message!

Please support StampinByHannah, and join my Code Club, by using the Hostess code featured in the top right hand of my blog. For orders of over £150 please do not use this code, as you are entitled to your own Hostess benefits!

Sign up to my newsletter here – http://eepurl.com/2if59

Hannah McCurley

Stampin’ Up! UK Independent Demonstrator

12 Days of Christmas | OnStage Display Board Stamper Projects

12 days of Christmas with StampinByHannah Independent Stampin' Up! UK Demonstrator

Ok, so back in July I received a very exciting phonecall from the gorgeous Kelly at the Stampin’ Up! UK office asking me to be a Display Board Stamper for Stampin’ Up! OnStage in Telford in November. I nearly exploded with excitement, but was bound by some seriously strict rules and wasn’t allowed to speak to anyone about it! I got a whole box of fabulous new Stampin’ Up! goodies in September and spend a good few weeks just staring at my new stamps and dies!

Stampin' Up! UK OnStage Display Board Stamper Makes 2016

See that stunning Balloon die, so pretty! I was challenged to use the Lift Me Up bundle, along with a couple of other goodies, check the video for a couple of extra samples!

Get new goodies right now, by joining Stampin’ Up! and my team of Stampin’ Friends (find out more HERE!), or if you are interested in a catalogue click HERE!


Giftaway: Place your order between now and midnight on the 21st December to get a FREE roll of Bakers Twine! (I will be ordering a selection of different colours, so its a bit of a lucky dip!)

Thick Bakers Twine 12 days of Christmas giftaway


Shop Now button-001join Stampin' Up! Uk

To purchase any of the items featured in my projects please use the links above. To join my team of Stampin’ Friends select ‘Join My Team’ or send me a message!

Please support StampinByHannah, and join my Code Club, by using the Hostess code featured in the top right hand of my blog. For orders of over £150 please do not use this code, as you are entitled to your own Hostess benefits!

Sign up to my newsletter here – http://eepurl.com/2if59

Hannah McCurley

Stampin’ Up! UK Independent Demonstrator