Blendabilities discontinued

Unfortunately, due to continuing issues with the Blendabilities range of markers, they have been permanently discontinued. I appreciate that this will be a huge disappointment for many people (including me) and I can only apologise on the company’s behalf. As you read on, you will see that the problems are outside of Stampin' Up!'s control.

What’s the problem?

When the tip of the pen is welded to the barrel, the welding process can leave microscopic (invisible) holes in the marker tip. This leads to accelerated evaporation of the alcohol in the ink.

Can I replace my Blendabilities for non-defective Blendabilities?

Sorry, no. The entire inventory is being returned to the manufacturer.

Are all Blendabilities markers defective?

No. Most Blendabilities markers work as intended. We ask that you use your best judgment to determine whether your product is in good condition or if you need a refund.

Why did it take so long for Stampin’ Up! to discover this problem?

Over the months, SU noticed quality issues with this product, but they were within normal tolerance. However, when corrections and complaints became more and more frequent, quality testing was increased, leading to the discovery of a serious problem with the product line. The manufacturer is now reporting a 30-40% failure rate before they are shipped to Stampin’ Up!— which is unacceptable.

Will the Tuxedo Black Memento Pad and Refill still be available?

Yes. These will also continue into the new catalogue. 

What now?

Ok, now some information for people who already have Blendabilities or are waiting for backordered items. Click the table to enlarge. 

Finally, a statement from Stampin’ Up!

We’re acutely aware that the decision to pull the Blendabilities line is painful for both you and for your customers; it’s also painful for all of us here at Stampin’ Up! We carefully selected a reputable manufacturer whom we believed could produce high quality, alcohol-based markers. But with the manufacturer reporting that 30-40% of the product produced could not be shipped to Stampin’ Up!, and with other defects being discovered by us when we tested the product here at Stampin’ Up!, we’ve come to the conclusion that both our demonstrators and the company are in a no-win position. Due to the nature of the defect, the problem would only become more widespread. That leaves us with only two possible courses of action: to keep selling the product (with uncertainty about whether the manufacturer could ever repair the defect) or withdraw it from our offering. We felt that we would rather pull the line than … sell a product with such a high fail rate and such an uncertain future.

We’ve learned that alcohol-based markers are very popular with our demonstrators and customers. Knowing that you’ve enjoyed all of the colouring options provided by alcohol-based markers helps us chart a course for finding a reliable product line that will truly meet the needs of our demonstrators and customers.

Blendabilities Workshop - places going fast!

Blendabilities Workshop

Unfortunately, due to quality issues with the pens, this event is cancelled until further notice

Friday, 20th March, 7pm-9.30pm

My house in Derbyshire

£23 per person – includes Old Olive and Daffodil Delight Blendabilities (RRP £10.95 each)

(Substitute colours can be provided, if you already have these)

The emphasis will be on learning the technique rather than creating lots of projects. 

Places strictly limited due to space restrictions

Please click HERE to book but be quick! I sent a newsletter out about this class last night and had bookings within five minutes! 

9.30am update: NOW FULL!
If you would like to register your interest for a repeat of this class, please click HERE

A Happy Thing Sale-a-Bration stamp set

I didn’t look twice at this stamp set when I first flicked through the Sale-a-Bration brochure but now it’s one of my favourites. It’s particularly great with our Blendabilities, and very easy to colour, as I discovered when I made a big batch of thank you cards last week for a huge workshop order. 

I made two different designs. The main batch used Chalk Lines to create a fun background. To do this, after stamping the lemon and greeting on my Whisper White cardstock, I stamped them again on a sticky note and cut it out, leaving a few millimetres around the edge. I used this to mask the image and stamp the rows of hearts to create the background. 

For the hostess, I created a card with two lemons, cutting a second one out and popping it up.

Colouring the images was easy with Blendabilities. My top tip is: work fast. You have to colour each section in full before moving onto the next one. So each leaf needs all three pens using on it before you can move on, otherwise the ink will dry and it won’t blend as easily. 

The washi tape is retired - it’s from the Autumn/Winter catalogue, but I had it in my drawer and there’s a similar design available now; you’ll find the link to that in the table below. 

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Links by TheseAreMyStamps.com

Happy Birthday From The Herd

You know what this blog needs? More llamas! And, as it’s been a while since I posted a project using From The Herd, that’s soon rectified. I may have mentioned it before but I really do love this stamp – it’s so silly and fun. And quite soothing to colour, too, once you get the hang of using the Blendabilities. They’re quite easy when you stop thinking too hard about it! 

While I’m here, I must mention that time is running out to register for my All-Day Craftathon on 28th February – the deadline for registering is 11pm on Friday, so that I can order the supplies on Saturday morning. Places are running out, too! I really can only take a couple more people for this event, so don’t delay if you want to join me!  All details are HERE.

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Links by TheseAreMyStamps.com

Ways to use Irresistibly Yours DSP (Sale-a-Bration)

I promised to show you several ways to use the new Irresistibly Yours Designer Series Paper and here they are... I’d love to hear of more ways that I haven’t covered if you know any. There is one other way to use this gorgeous paper that I haven’t mentioned... and that’s to leave it completely untouched for a really subtle and classy look. But if you’re looking for subtle and classy, you’ve come to the wrong place!

For those who haven’t yet seen this paper, it’s white with a glossy white pattern, opening up a world of possibilities because most inks will stick only to the matt section. So you apply your colour then polish it with kitchen paper to expose the white pattern again. It’s like magic!

Let’s take a look at the methods I’ve used in more detail. Clockwise, from top left...

Stamp on it
We’re stampers, right? So why not stamp on this fab paper. I particularly like combining methods for this, eg brayering a background on the flowery or leafy pattern, then stamping with Hardwood on top. Here, I’ve simply experimented with stamping some solid flowers and leaves.

Spritz it
I used six drops of reinker in a half-filled spritzer bottle; Coastal Cabana at the top and Old Olive at the bottom. Use more drops (or less water) for a more intense colour. This does take a while to dry but you could speed things up by using alcohol instead of water.

Colour with markers
I tried both kinds and decided this method was probably best for the striped pattern. Both types of marker worked well, although you do need to clean off the glossy areas quickly if you’re using Blendabilities.

Brayer it
Perfect for larger areas and, if you’re after a uniform colour, you can forget all those pesky brayering rules about starting at the edge of the paper and working your way in. Just brayer away until you get colour saturation. If you prefer a graduated look, then you need to remember all those rules about starting off the edge of the paper. Just play around until you get something you like!

Sponge it
Sponge Daubers are perfect striped paper; for other patterns, use an actual sponge. You can sponge just one area, various colours, or do the whole lot. Although, personally, if I was going for a uniform colour, I’d brayer it instead (see above).

DTP (Direct-to-Paper) it
This is a grungier technique but I had fun here creating a night sky using various blue ink pads (Lost Lagoon, Coastal Cabana, Marina Mist). I find the old-style ink pads are easier to use as they slide along the cardstock better. But, for fun, I tried simply dropping the new-style ink pads onto the cardstock, which created quite a pleasing effect.

So, now it’s time to get yourself some Irresistibly Yours DSP - which is FREE with a £45 purchase before the end of March. And don’t forget to let me know if you come up with any more methods of using it! My challenge now, I suppose, is to make all of these pieces of paper into finished projects. Don’t hold your breath!

Around the World Challenge AW33 Guy Greetings masculine card

It’s  time for another challenge over at Around the World Challenges - this time it’s a sketch challenge (see below). I decided to buck the trend by ignoring the pretty heart shape and producing a distinctly masculine card. 

I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw this stamp set in the new catalogue, with the words “righty-tighty, lefty-loosey”... I honestly thought that was something only my husband says! I have never heard anybody else say it in my life. 

I do like a vintage creation and had great fun dirtying this card up with some direct-to-paper techniques, some Gorgeous Grunge stamping (which I always seem to “mess up” by pressing too hard, but luckily it doesn’t matter with this stamp set) and even a bit of brayering. 

Where’s the brayering, you may be wondering... well, that strip of striped DSP comes white, with glossy white embossed stripes. It’s part of a pack of DSP called Irresistibly Yours (a SAB freebie!); they’re all white with white embossed patterns... giving you lots of scope to give them a brand new look. I simply brayered with Island Indigo, then with a bit of Smoky Slate to dirty it even more, and wiped off the glossy areas with some kitchen roll. 

The final touch was the bling. You don’t normally think of rhinestones for a masculine card, but I wanted something, so dirtied it up with the darkest Smoky Slate Blendabilities (also a SAB freebie). 

So why not have a go yourself? I’d love to see your creations over on the Around the World Challenges blog! 

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Links by TheseAreMyStamps.com