If you were wondering how to make the gift bag we featured on our lovely blue and white product page, then wonder no longer! Download the pdf here for a template and instructions. Get more mileage out of that spare scrapbooking stash and put it to good use!

9am Felt the urge to stick some (felt that is!) and used my adhesive cartridge to easily apply some adhesive to a felt border.

11am The fridge is beckoning! (do you know that feeling?) How about using my magnetic cartridge to turn some of your favourite snaps into magnetic pictures for the fridge? The children would also love some dress-up dolls with magnetic clothes to play with while you're making the lunch.

1pm Creative mode in full swing now, and trying some innovative techniques with fabric. What happens if you laminate fabric and use that on a scrapbook layout? It stops it fraying - fantastic!

4pm Children home from school and needing something to occupy them. Get them to feed me some cut-outs from their favourite magazine and turn them into stickers!

8pm Children safely tucked up in bed, and I'm turning my attention to that cool new minibook with see-through pages. Laminate photos and bits of paper and turn them into see-through pages for your next minibook project!

10pm Getting tired now, so web surfing is all I can cope with. Check out Xyron for all the info about me, including the unbeatable price of £17!

In our Spring Issue we invited you to hold your own mini crop for National Scrapbooking Day on May 3rd. We've put together a kit to help you, including some crop guidelines for those of you hosting crops, some kit instructions to print out for your newbie scrapbookers who attend, and even some invitations which list everything people will need to bring! See the links below to download the pdfs.
Make sure you get your orders in for your crop kits in plenty of time - see this post with links to all of the available National Scrapbooking Kits from retailers.
And last but not least, don't forget to take a photo of your crop in action to enter our giveaway for some fabulous Chatterbox goodies from Craft Superstore!

crop guidelines.pdf (484KB)
kit instructions.pdf (1MB)
invitations.pdf (296KB)

One of my favourite ways to pass the time is mooching around blogs, looking for ideas and new products (it's also the perfect way to brighten a very boring Friday afternoon!). To this end I have an RSS feed as long as my arm. (If you're wondering what an RSS feed is, it's an automatic list that updates every time one of my bookmarked blogs updates - great, because I don't have to keep checking back for new posts!) It gets a little out of control sometimes - as well as blogs from my favourite scrapbookers, I like to keep up with design trends, knitting inspiration and sewing loveliness.

That said, I'm always looking for new blogs to visit - what can I say, I'm hooked! I'd love to hear about your daily visits. Who do you like to read? Do you keep a blog yourself? Post a comment below and tell me all about it.

The Spring issue (39) of ScrapBook inspirations goes on sale next Monday, 31st March

Spring into action with this issue...
* The flowery issue oodles of fabulously floral ways to use blooms on your layouts
* Wedding keepsake make an elegant star book to celebrate your big day
* Your designs 10 pages of layouts on the beauty of nature and using paint
* Everyday inspiration Anita Mundt's Russian doll-inspired projects
* Techniques to try transform your page protectors with ideas from Shimelle Laine, plus clever ideas for using air-drying clay from Anne Parry
* True blues our pick of the best blue & white embellishments
* Start the album of a lifetime Venessa Matthews shares her simple template ideas
All this, plus loads more!

Subscribe to ScrapBook inspirations magazine and get a free Scraparatus tool!

This versatile little tool can be used to...

Punch holes...

Set eyelets...

And make mini die cuts

Each Scraparatus starter kit includes: two hole punch attachments, four different sized eyelet setting attachments, two dinky dies (star and tag), stomp pad and stone (to protect your work area) and complete instructions!

As well as a free Scraparatus, new subscribers get all this:

✿ 13 issues of ScrapBook inspirations a year
✿ Save 15% on the shop price
✿ Free delivery direct to your door – never miss an issue!
✿ 60 day money-back guarantee. We’ll refund any unmailed issues if you don’t love it!

For full details, or to take advantage of this offer, go to www.myfavouritemagazines.co.uk/sbi/W017

This offer begins 26th March 08 and ends 31th May 08.

It's less than two weeks until our show, Stitch & Craft 2008 and we're starting to get really excited!

We've pulled out all the stops this year and put together a great day out for you! With workshops, free Make & Takes and plenty of shopping opportunities, you'll be in crafty heaven!

Dates
This year's show is running from the Thursday 27th to Sunday 30th March. We'll be joined by our sister craft mags, PaperCraft inspirations, You Can Craft, Simply Knitting, Cross Stitcher and Cross Stitch Collection, so you'll find a host of creative inspiration on offer. To help you plan your visit each day will be focused on a particular craft:

Thursday 27th March: Papercrafting
Friday 28th March: Knitting
Saturday 29th March: Stitching
Sunday 30th March: Scrapbooking Day!

On the dedicated days we've planned visits from crafting celebrities and special competitions, but if you can't make it on our specific day, don't worry - you'll find plenty to do on the other days.

Venue
Stitch & Craft 2008 is hosted at Olympia 2 in London. You can find directions here.

Scrapbook Theatre
Come and scrap with our designers! Anne Parry, Jane Dean and Shimelle Laine will be at the Scrapbook Theatre - a dedicated space, just for scrappers. We'll be running free Make & Takes with the latest scrapbooking supplies from Rico and DoCrafts. We'll provide everything you need to put together a 6x6in layout. If you've never scrapped before, don't worry! Our designers will be there to lend a hand! You can bring along your own photos to scrap on the day (just make sure they're not originals - get copies instead) or make use of the Canon camera and printer we'll have set up.

Last year's Scrapbook Theatre!

Workshops
Sign up for your workshops now! If you want expert help on cardmaking or scrapbooking, or fancy trying a new craft, then sign up for one of our workshops. These can sell out quickly, so make sure you sign up soon.

Tickets
To book your tickets visit the Twisted Thread website. If you're a subscriber, have your number ready because you can get a discount on the full ticket price.

If you have any questions, leave a comment or drop us an email See you there!

Nosy Rosie that I am, I have really been enjoying snooping around the On My Desk blog. It features photos of different creative folks' desks - everyone from quilters to illustrators.

It's interesting to see the different storage solutions that people employ and I have to admit to having a soft spot for anyone who arranges their supplies by colour!

You can submit photos of your own desk to the site or search the archives to find all sorts of cool desks (Claudine Hellmuth's desk seems to be overrun by pups and cats!). I *won't* be submitting this, but just for fun, here's a photo of my work desk...

Get a ScrapBook inspirations binder and keep all your back issues safe and sound

ScrapBook inspirations has been around for a while now, and we've been getting requests for binders so that you can keep your old copies nice and tidy. Well, we're thrilled to say that we can now offer you a fabulous ScrapBook inspirations binder - and we think it's pretty gorgeous!

Each binder holds 13 issues (that's one year's worth) and we've chosen a smart polka-dot design that will look the part on any scrapper's desk. If you'd like to get your hands on one here's what to do:

1. Call 0844 848 1602 and ask for a ScrapBook inpirations binder

2. Each one costs £6.99, so they'll take your payment details then and there

3. Alternatively get hold of a recent issue (April 08 onwards) and turn to p96 for an order form.

4. File all your copies of the magazine neatly away and you'll always be able to find your favourite ideas exactly when you need them!

Win tickets to the Make It show in Bolton

The Make It show is heading to the Reebok Stadium in Bolton. This year’s event runs 16-18th May 2008 and includes a great range of new craft products from over 100 exhibitors plus daily demonstrations and workshops. For full details including ticket prices and booking visit www.make-it.org.uk or call 08444 771 000. Plus, we’ve got 18 pairs of tickets to give away, thanks to Make It. To be in with a chance of winning answer this question:

Turn to page 75 in the Spring issue (number 39) of ScrapBook inspirations (on sale 31st March) and you'll find all the details of this great prize. To enter simply select the correct answer to the question below and fill in your details.

The deadline for entries is 28th April 08. Rules apply. Good luck!