Tag: Oceania

Photo of the Day – Paris Daisy

On By patriciamanhireIn Art, Cardmaking, Close to My Heart, Creative Memories, Photography, ScrapbookingLeave a comment

My photo of the day. These Paris Daisies are amazing. They have self seeded in my garden and have given such great colour and lots of inspiration for my photography.
I will also take the opportunity to update what is happening with Creative Memories and Close to My Heart as I have noticed that people are searching for answers about CM products in NZ. Brian O’Callaghan was on Facebook on Friday night (he was the MD of CM and is involved with setting up CTMH in Australasia) and stated that they are looking into trying to continue with getting the pages and protectors here, but there are no promises that they are able to procure them for our market.  There are issues with patents and copyrights with CM USA.  There are lots of products on Trade Me, but do be very careful as there are some price gougers out there asking for $150 or more for one set of pages and protectors.

I have no more information as yet regarding the launch of CTMH in New Zealand.  I am hoping to know more later in the week and will keep you posted here.  Their range of products look exciting and I can’t wait to see what is released Down Under.  I am particularly excited that there is lots of card making products.  I am busy making lots of cards for our shop and it will be great having a new range of products to play with.  So it is still a matter of watching this space…

I hope you are all having a safe and happy weekend.

Patricia

Wow – Great News

On By patriciamanhireIn Cardmaking, Close to My Heart, Crafts, Creative Memories, Digital Art, Photography, Scrapbooking2 Comments

Hello there

I have just received news that Creative Memories Australia and New Zealand has been bought out by Close to My Heart to  start their Australasian business.  I wasn’t really sure about Plan B, but I have had a look at the catalogue from America and it is amazing.  I love the fact that there is plenty of scope for my stamping and card making as well as for scrapbooking.  There is a lot more decorative products, plus there is also digital products as well.  It is also in a good financial position as well, which is very critical after what we have been through over the last few weeks. I still have a lot of questions about the structure and set up but I will now definitely be looking at this very closely.

So watch this space…

Happy Crafting

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RIP Creative Memories Australia and New Zealand.

On By patriciamanhireIn Crafts, Creative Memories2 Comments

Hello there.

Today the doors shut on Creative Memories Australia and New Zealand.  This is a very sad day as they have been a very good company to work with and I will miss the fabulous tools, albums and decorative elements.  I have also met some lovely people in the process of  building my business and it has kept me going through all the health challenges over the last 18 months.  However, I guess it is a sign of the times and we just have to keep positive and move on.

However, all is not lost as there is to be a major announcement either at the end of today or tomorrow so I will keep you posted.

I am still working on the Art and Craft Collective and will keep you posted on the progress.   I can’t wait to open the shop and have my cards and photos for sale in it along with some amazing crafts from some incredible people here in the Hutt Valley.  But there is a lot of logistics to cover first and it is a crash course in small business administration which is very useful indeed.

As you can see I have changed the header on my page and have now renamed it my Creative Corner.  I will now post all the different crafty creations that I get up to over the next few months/years…

Happy Crafting

Patricia

 

 

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Wellington Harbour_0001.jpg

On By patriciamanhireIn Art, PhotographyLeave a comment

One of my photos of the day. Today was incredible with no wind and sunshine and Wellington was definitely not living up to it’s reputation of the Windy Capital . The harbour was like glass and the reflections were amazing.
Patricia

 

The End if an Era!

On By patriciamanhireIn Art, Cardmaking, Crafts, Digital Art, Photography6 Comments

Hello everyone.

Well it looks as though Creative Memories Australia and New Zealand will be closing down on 10 June 2013.  This is very sad as the business in New Zealand and Australia was doing well and the products are of very good quality.  There is some hope in that there will be an announcement on June 11 regarding a new venture so all is not lost.  However, I have made the decision not to continue as a CM Consultant.  I have had significant health issues over the last year and it has been a struggle to maintain my commitment to my customers and to the company.  I have enjoyed my time with CM and have met some wonderful people.  I have also gained some great tools that will keep me going for some time yet.

But as one door shuts another one opens!  I have been involved in setting up an Art and Craft Collective in the Hutt Valley and in conjunction with the Hutt City Council, we are in the process of setting up a shop in the Hutt CBD.  This shop will be selling locally produced arts and crafts and be run by the collective.  I am really excited about this new venture and I am very grateful to the Hutt City Council and their About Space Programme that has allowed us to set up this venture and keep our costs to a minimum.  I will be selling my cards there (and look to doing some artwork with my photos)  and there are going to be a wide variety of products for sale – a one stop shop for all your gift needs.  So watch this space…

I hope you all have a safe and happy weekend.

Patricia

 

Sad news

On By patriciamanhireIn Creative Memories12 Comments

Hello there

I have had some very sad news over the weekend.  Creative Memories Australia and New Zealand has been placed in Voluntary Administration.  This has been as a result of the parent company in America filing for bankruptcy and unable to continue to provide products for the Australasian market.  This has resulted in my website being disabled and my business being placed on hold.  The recession is really hitting us all hard, but we have to stay positive and continue to spread the word about the importance of memory keeping and documentation.

I am sure that the staff at Creative Memories are doing their best to find solutions to this situation and I guess it is just a matter of watch this space.

There is still a limited range of products available so if anyone would like something please contact me to see if it is still available.

I will continue with my scrapbooking and crafting and blogging my efforts as I have enjoyed interacting with many people around the world, and getting a lot of inspiration from the many talented people in the blogosphere.

I would like to finish of with the mantra from the consultants in Australasia – Keep calm and scrapbook!

Happy scrapping

Patricia