Altenew 10th Anniversary Blog Hop Day 1 + Giveaway (over $3,500 in Total Prizes)
Oh my goodness, I’m so excited to be part of this hop celebrating Altenew’s 10th anniversary! It’s extra special for me as I am brand new to the Design Team but I have been a fan of Altenew since Day 1. Huge congratulations to Jennifer, Tasnim and the whole Altenew team on this major milestone!
This giveaway is INSANE!! There is over $3,500 in total prizes! We are giving away a $50 Altenew gift certificate to 10 winners, a $20 ArtistrybyAltenew gift certificate to 5 winners, and an online papercrafting class($39.99 value) from Altenew Academy Online Class to 14 winners. There are also 28 awesome companies/crafty friends who are celebrating with us, and they are offering the following prizes:
Altenew: 10 x $50 Altenew Gift Certificates
ArtistrybyAltenew: 5 x $20 ArtistrybyAltenew Gift Certificates
Altenew Academy: 14 x Online Papercrafting Classes($39.99 value each)
Crafter's Companion: 1 x Gemini II Die Cutting and Embossing Machine ($329 value)
LDRS Creative: 4 x $50 LDRS Creative Gift Certificates
Online Card Classes: 5 x Online Card Classes ($25 value each)
Jennifer McGuire Ink: 1 Share Handmade Kindness goodies bag ($100 value)
Honey Bee Stamps: $100 Gift Certificate
Hero Arts: $100 Gift Certificate
Lawn Fawn: $100 Gift Certificate
Pink and Main: $100 Gift Certificate
Scrapbook & Cards Today: $100 Gift Certificate
Taylored Expressions: $100 Gift Certificate
Gina K. Designs: $100 Gift Certificate
CraftStash: $100 Gift Certificate
Brutus Monroe: $100 Gift Certificate
Picket Fence Studios: $50 Gift Certificate
Pelletier Craft Studio: 3 x $25 Gift Certificates
Michelle's Cards and Stamps: AUD $100 Gift Certificate
Spellbinders Paper Arts: 2 x $25 Gift Certificates
Scrapbook.com: $50 Gift Certificate
My Craft Room: $50 Gift Certificate
Krafters Cart: $50 Gift Certificate
A Cherry on Top: $50 Gift Certificate
Simon Says Stamp: $50 Gift Certificate
My Favorite Things: $50 Gift Certificate
Pinkfresh Studio: $50 Gift Certificate
Bumbleberry Papercrafts: £25 Gift Certificate
Seize the Stamp: CHF 25 Gift Certificate
MarkerPop: $25 Gift Certificate
Auzz Trinklets N Krafts: AUD $25 Gift Certificate
Be sure to leave comments by 04/16/2024 for a chance to win one of 68 prizes! To make the hop more exciting, start your comment with "Hi from (city or country where you're from)!" 68 winners will be chosen at random from the comments left on any of the blogs listed below and will be announced on the Altenew Card Blog on 04/19/2024.
This hop is full of amazing crafters and the inspiration is going to absolutely blow you away! You can find the full hop list via the InLinkz thingy below. The more you hop and comment, the more chances you have of winning some of these amazing prizes.
Right, with all the exciting stuff out of the way, let’s talk card making! I have made a few projects for this occasion and they are featuring some of my favourite Altenew products and I have on purpose gone back to some of the older ones, rather than focus on newer stuff. It is a 10 year anniversary after all.
I adore big word and sentiment diecuts, and if you know me, you also know I love florals and coffee, so I have incorporated all of these in my cards. Let’s get to it! My first card is super simple but the message is to the point.
I stamped up some of the images from the Coffee Talk stamp set, with Espresso and Mocha ink (what the latte else, right??) with the help of the StampWheel. Easy peasy. On top of this I added a sentiment with Pure Graphite ink, and then I sprinkled some bling on it that look like drops of spilled coffee. These are Metallic Pearls Sparkling Champagne from Pinkfresh Studio.
My second card is anything but a flat card! I had a bunch of these BAF Chrystantemum images stamped up (This particular set is discontinued sadly, but how gorgeous is it?) so I decided to use them. I made a big bouquet of them and then added the You Are Loved word die, that I had cut out of Brushed Gold Metallic Cardstock right on top.
I did layer up that You Are Loved diecut so that it wouldn’t sag, and I love doing this with diecuts. Both words, sentiments and images. It really does add a little something without taking anything away from the design itself.
My third card is an ode to my love of blue. I started out by ink blending Dusk ink onto a card base, in an ombrè fashion. I do love doing an ombrè, it is a gorgeous way to add a bit of interest using only one colour. Or use many if you want, here I used just Dusk and a lot of patience.
On top of the ink blended panel I used the Classy Stripes stencil and Nuvo Glimmer Paste in Moonstone, to add some sparkle! I have used another discontinued set to finish this card off. This one is called You Are and it has some lovely sentiments and a beautiful cloud image in it.
I have stamped it up with the Dusk ink again, slightly overlapping so that it went all over the card panel, then fussy cut this out. I also heat embossed the same cloud on vellum, in Platinum embossing powder. These two pieces I layered up so that the vellum cloud would peek out from under the blue ones.
The last thing I did was to stamp up ‘you are amazing’ on a slim banner with the same Dusk ink, and once that was adhered to the card I decided to not add anything else. Shocker, I know!
Even though I have used some older and discontinued sets on these, I hope you have enjoyed this post and my projects. Thank you for hanging in there until the end, I know I rambled on a little bit.
I thought I’d also mention that Altenew are offering some fantastic deals to celebrate, including 20% off the StampWheel! This offer is only available today, April 1st (NO APRIL FOOLS!) 12:01 am EDT until 11:59 pm EDT, so if you have your eyes on it, now is the time to treat yourself.
If you spend more than $69 you will also receive a FREE Zip 'n' Stash - Teal (1/pack) ($6.99 value) on 04/01/2024 from 12:01 am EDT until 11:59 pm EDT. While supplies last, the free gift will be added to your cart automatically.
Plus, get FREE U.S. shipping on orders over $29 (no code needed) or $10 OFF international shipping on orders over $129 with code HAPPY10TH at checkout. Valid from 04/01/2024 at 12:01 am EDT until 04/05/2024 at 11:59 pm EDT.
Well, that’s it from me for today. I hope you have enjoyed this little glimpse into my creative corner. Don’t forget to leave a comment and to hop along the rest of the blog hop for more chances to win some of those fantastic giveaway prizes!
With love and light, creativity and sparkle,
Erica
Big announcement *Squeal*
Hi and welcome to my brand new blog/website!
It’s still a work in progress, because I am rubbish at technology schmecknology. We are not friends and have a longstanding unresolved vendetta between us. I wish I was kidding but no… however that is not what I came here to talk about.
I’m still in delighted shock about what I’m going to share… (insert a very high-pitched squeal here!!) OK, OK… here it comes: I have joined Altenew’s Design Team! Yes!! THE Altenew! Ermagherd, I’m so excited about this I can barely hold it together! You can read the announcement blog post on the Altenew blog!
From May I will be sharing two blog posts and videos each month on the Altnew blog and YouTube channel, and my own too. I will link to all of these so you can subscribe and follow if you want. For my first month of April, they are breaking me in gently and I only have to do one post, plus the new release hops and things but holy cannoli! This has been so hard to not spill the beans on, and now finally the cat is out of the bag!
I have a little video on my YouTube channel, which you can watch HERE, where I was trying my best to be professional and make the announcement, but it went so-so, despite trying many, many times. It was so entertaining to watch back I decided to share the footage anyway, even though it’s totally bananas! I hope it will make you smile and laugh alongside me.
I thought I’d also share a few little cards I have made over the years.
I love the glow on this one, and then the subtle ‘you are loved’ diecut from it. The stamped image is Leaf Canopy, and I coloured it in with Artist Alcohol Markers Set E and then heat embossing clear embossing powder on top.
Altenew was the first company I came across that did the layering stamps, for that lovely and realistic look. It didn’t take long before I was hooked! This is one of the Build-A-Flower sets, it’s called Coral Charm. It is only available in a bundle with inks now, but it is a stunning set. I used the Warm & Cozy Inks to add the colours. Some are heat embossed too, for a slightly different look.
Both of the stamp sets I used for this MASSIVE card are unfortunately discontinued, but that won’t stop me from using them again and again. The inks I have used are the Cherry Blossoms Ovals mostly, and a few from Rose Petal and Red Cosmos. For the leaves I used Tropical Forest inks.
I was lucky enough to be a guest designer for two releases of the Artist Markers, and I will for sure build up my stash of them to complement my card making. This card is also using the Leaf Canopy stamp set and the Artist Alcohol Marker Set E, plus copper embossing powder.
For this one I stamped up the Pattern Play Circle stamp and then added pops of colour to the panel with many, many Artist Alcohol Markers.
These are just a few of the many, many, MANY projects I have made with Altenew products over the years. I have been collecting (not hoarding!) since the beginning. I think it was in 2014, the first year they were in business, that I discovered them actually! There is a big 10 year anniversary celebration coming up which you are not going to want to miss!
That is it from me for today, thank you so much for stopping by and cheering me on! It really does mean so much to me. Don’t forget to sign up for email updates here, I will work out how to only send out important stuff and not spam you like crazy.
With love and light, creativity and sparkle,
Erica
Sales page, affiliate links and discount codes
Please note that I have added a separate SALE PAGE and separate AFFILIATE PAGE, and will remove this page by the end of January.
This is where you can find some great sales, deals and any discount codes I have to share. Scroll to the bottom to see the current deals available.
Again, I need to make sure that you know that all of the links on this page, and most of the website, will be affiliate links. Sharing affiliate links, which you will hopefully use when you treat yourself to a little something-something, is one way that I earn a small living.
The way it works is that I generate a personalised link to a company, product, bundle or deal, and when you click on that link to browse or shop it tells the company it’s linked to that it’s from me. If you shop and complete an order, they will pay me a % of the total order (minus shipping and taxes typically) as a thank you for directing you to them. This system doesn’t ever cost you anything extra, EVER, but is a great way for you to support me if you find inspiration with me and you are shopping anyway. Thank you so much in advance for thinking of this when you place an order, it really does mean the world to me and every little helps.
You can take 15% off your order with the code ERICAC15 at checkout.
This link goes to the UK shop
This link goes to the US shop
CURRENT DEALS
I will do my best to keep this as updated as possible, but sometimes mistakes will be made, I’m only human after all.
Over at Scrapbook.com there are always a bunch of good deals to take advantage of. Pick and choose from the ones that suit you best, or fit with your order.
In the clearance section at Scrapbook.com there are all sorts of deals and steals, so if you have something on your wishlist, keep an eye on this page for sure.
Altenew is another company which often have good deals on a range of products. If you do have your eye on something but haven’t taken the leap yet, it’s definitely worth checking their deals regularly.
In their Last Chance Section you can find a little bit of everything, and with prices discounted up to 45% it’s a super deal!! But hurry, once they are sold out, there is alway a possibility they will not be restocked.
In the Weekly Sales section you can find everything from individual ink pads, to washi tape, to stamp sets, hot foil plates and more. This is a great place to shop when you need a little craft stuff fix, at a discount.
If you like big blooms and you can not lie, this is a great offer! Just click on the banner to go to the product page.
Catherine Pooler has a Last Chance section where you can find some super deals, but these are first come first serve as many of the products will be discontinued once they sell out so if you see something you want, grab it pronto!
Pinkfresh Studio have fun offers regularly too, and it’s best to shop early as a lot of their fab products sell out quickly!
Stock up on your favorites with an additional 25% off on over 90 clearance items already marked down by 50% to 70%. Save big on scrapbooking products, stamps, dies, stencils, and hot foil plates!
There's no code needed, prices are as marked. No price adjustments on previous orders. Valid until Jan 16, 11:59pm CST.
There is also a WEEKLY PROMO page where certain products are reduce for that week alone, it’s definitely worth earmarking that page and check it every week if you have a big wishlist.
It all began with an idea
I’m sure many of you who come here are crafty, creative and artistic in one way or another. If you are not, I’d love to hear what brought you here but hi, and welcome! New friends are always welcome.
This is a brand spanking new website, and I’m still learning the ropes on how to navigate this whole world, but I’m excited to see where it goes. I’m not going to lie, this has been a work in progress for a long while, but rather than focusing on how long it’s taken me to actually get going, I’m going to celebrate the fact I finally pushed that ‘publish’ button.
I do have some exciting new things lined up for 2024, including teaching a couple of weekend crafting retreats in the UK! The first one will take place in May, and if you are interested in hearing more about it or getting your ticket, CLICK HERE.
I will also be teaching some classes in the US in April, in Orlando, FL and also Chantilly, VA, at some expos hosted by Stamp & Scrapbook Expo. Click that link to check dates, locations and more info. I will update here once I have all the information on how to book tickets to my classes. I hope to see you there!
As my studio is an ever-evoling space, I will be offering some mystery destash boxes of gently used/brand new/very well loved items, so if you want to treat yourself or enable someone else to get into crafting and embrace their creativity, this is the perfect opportunity to do so.
Well, that’s about it for the time being. I will keep working on this website to give you the best user experience, so if you have any thoughts, insights on what works and doesn’t work, please feel free to email me at erica@ericaabdesigns.com and let me know.
With love and light, sparkle and creativity
Erica