I can't quite believe that it's Wednesday already - this week is just zipping by! I've had two days of classes and a great start to Sale-A-Bration. So a quick post from me today sharing another of the cards from my technique card this week using the 'Awesomely Artistic' stamp set:

This time with a Mint Macaron base, a little Timeless Elegance Designer Series Paper and a double flagged banner across the centre to draw the eye to the collage panel and trio of dragonflies and add interest to the overall design. More Wink of Stella on the dragonfly wings (clear this time) and a coloured enamel dot to highlight the sentiment completes my card. Oh and a co-ordinated envelope too!

Clear Wink Of Stella Glitter Brush	Awesomely Artistic Clear-Mount Stamp Set	Metallics Sequin Assortment	Big Shot	Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad
Sahara Sand Classic Stampin' Pad	Sahara Sand A4 Cardstock	Very Vanilla A4 Cardstock	Mint Macaron Classic Stampin' Pad	Mint Macaron A4 Cardstock
White Perfect Accents	Banner Triple Punch

A two-post day today! This year's Sale-A-Bration promotion and the launch of the Stampin' Up! 2016 Spring-Summer catalogue is today and you can get the full scoop here; for today's creative post I am sharing a card that we are making in my technique class this month. Our class is using the 'Awesomely Artistic' stamp set and looking at collage techniques. This is one of the cards we made and it features one of my favourite new products from the new catalogue for adding a touch of sparkle to your projects - take a look:

The glimmer on the dragonfly's wings is tricky to capture on a photograph, but I can assure you in real life they have a beautiful golden shimmer! The Wink of Stella Glitter brushes are the perfect tool to add sparkle and shine to your projects. There are two different pens on page 24 of the new Spring-Summer catalogue and we used the gold one on this card. We used the clear brush on our other two cards; I'll share these another day. 

My February technique classes will feature the beautiful Bloomin' Hearts Thinlits Die and the co-ordinating Bloomin' Love stamp set. If you live in or around Northampton and you would like to join me for crafting enjoyment with like-minded individuals, please do get in touch for more details. We had a new lady join us today for the first time so if you're reading this, a big hello to you Fran - I hope you enjoyed yourself as much as we enjoyed your company and look forward to seeing you again soon.

I have another full day of classes today; I'l be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Gold Wink Of Stella Glitter Brush	Awesomely Artistic Clear-Mount Stamp Set	Metallics Sequin Assortment	Big Shot	Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad
Sahara Sand Classic Stampin' Pad	Sahara Sand A4 Cardstock	White Stampin' Chalk Marker	Expressions Natural Elements	Sahara Sand 7/8" (2.2 Cm) Lace Trim
Metallic Foil Doilies	Whisper White A4 Cardstock	Project Life Cards & Labels Framelits Dies	1" Circle Punch

Today it's time for a new challenge over at Create With Connie and Mary and this week we have a great colour combination for you:

As soon as I saw these colours I knew they would be another great combination for work with my Awesomely Artistic stamp set, this time with the fabby new Brick Wall embossing folder:

I used Mint Macaron for my base with a mat of Perfect Plum, then on a piece of Whisper White I stamped the flower spray in Mint Macaron and a few grunge splatters in Perfect Plum, before running it through my Big Shot with the Brick Wall embossing folder in order to create my cottage garden effect. It's important you stamp before running this piece through the embossing folder rather than the other way around, otherwise you will be unable to achieve an even stamp on account of the cement grooves (I hope that makes sense!) I then sponged the whole of my card front with Sahara Sand ink to emphasise the brick shapes and texture of the wall. I wrapped a piece of Blackberry Bliss Striped Cotton Ribbon around my card front (the colour is sufficiently muted on the cotton that it is a good match for Perfect Plum) before adhering to the base, then tucked in the circle embellishment behind it before adding my sentiment, which I heat embossed in white onto Mint Macaron, and the beautiful dragonfly, which I stamped in Perfect Plum and Versamark then sprinkled liberally with Iridescent Ice to add a lovely sparkle. A last minute sprinkle of pearls finishes my card. 

I love the versatility of this set. On account of working ahead this card was made a couple of weeks ago, however I wanted to give a little 'shout out' to a fellow Stampin' Up! demonstrator friend of mine, Julie Kettlewell, who blogged something quite similar last week (I am abroad and sans stamping supplies, so have had no opportunity to work up something substantially different!). Julie has made some lovely cards using the Awesomely Artistic stamp set, so if this is a set that appeals to you, I recommend you check out her Pinterest board for more inspiration. Also, do visit the other Design Team members to see how they used this week's challenge colours; there's lots of inspiration over on their blogs too!

Right, I'm off to top up my tan! Enjoy your day and I'll be back tomorrow with another project; until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Yay it's Sunday and time for a new challenge over at The Paper Players where this week the lovely Jaydee has the following colour challenge for us:

I also used this week's sketch over at The Paper Craft Crew as the basis for today's layout. I've been desperate to ink up my new Awesomely Artistic stamp set and decided that these colours would be perfect for a soft and subtle card. This is what I came up with:

I used Mint Macaron for my card base, added some grunge splatters and then a panel of Smoky Slate and Smoky Slate DSP - I love the script pattern! I then created my feature square, which contains a lot of detail for my normally rather CAS style! I used a piece of Mint Macaron, onto which I stamped the small fern in the stamp set in the same colour ink, stamping a few times without re-inking for added depth. I stamped the floral bloom in Smoky Slate onto Whisper White and used my blender pen to add some colour to the flowers in both Smoky Slate and Mint Macaron, before fussy cutting the whole thing. Yes, you read that correctly - I fussy cut the whole thing! I won't deny it was rather fiddly and took me absolutely ages, but I think it was worth it to make it really stand out. As if that wasn't enough, I then fussy cut a few extra flowers and popped them onto the base bloom with glue dots, as I wanted some height but not too much (hence they aren't that visible in the photograph - they are more obvious in real life). I added a few pearls here and there for a little extra interest. I stamped my sentiment panel in Smoky Slate on Smoky Slate and stamped the word 'Friend' in Versamark and heat embossed in white. I added some mint lace ribbon trim behind it before adhering to my card with dimensionals. Did you spot my Sahara Sand? I have used it sparingly, on the round element tucked behind the flower and the trio of candy dots, so you can be forgiven if you blinked and missed it at first glance! A scattering of a few more pearls, and done!

This card is much fussier than many I design, however I am very pleased with it and I love this stamp set - you will definitely be seeing more of it! Before you reach for your ink and papers, check out what our amazing team has created to inspire you this week:

I look forward to seeing how you use these colours when I visit your cards in the gallery this week. I am spending the day with my upline for a team training day today which should be fun; it's always nice to catch up with the wider team. I'm hoping the weather will continue to be warm and that I will be coming home to an evening BBQ (well, hoping!). 

Back tomorrow with another project; until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Awesomely Artistic Clear-Mount Stamp Set	Project Life Cards & Labels Framelits Dies	Big Shot	Magnetic Platform	Mint Macaron 1" Dotted Lace Trim
Smoky Slate Classic Stampin' Pad	Smoky Slate A4 Cardstock	Neutrals Designer Series Paper Stack	Mint Macaron Classic Stampin' Pad	Mint Macaron A4 Cardstock
Sahara Sand Classic Stampin' Pad	Sahara Sand A4 Cardstock	1" Circle Punch	Neutrals Candy Dots	Pearl Basic Jewels
Embossing Buddy	Versamark Pad	Heat Tool (Uk)	White Stampin' Emboss Powder	Whisper White A4 Cardstock
Blender Pens

Saturday already - I just don't know where this week has gone! I've spent most of today baking in readiness for a very special young lady who is about to turn 'double digits' in the birthday stakes (more on that later in the week!) so just have time for a quick post today to share the 'make and take' card that I made recently at the Stampin' Up! event held in Telford recently, using a beautiful new set called 'Awesomely Artistic':

The base of the card is one of the new in-colours, Mint Macaron, decorated with a piece of burlap. The main panel is watercolour paper, stamped with a blossom in Mint Macaron and some grunge splatters from the same set in Delightful Dijon. The dragonfly was stamped and spritzed with water so that the colour would bleed into the paper. The sentiment is from another new set, 'One Big Meaning' and was stamped in Tip Top Taupe, firstly directly onto the watercolour paper and then again onto Very Vanilla and the bottom part cut out and popped up on a couple of dimensionals. A vintage faceted button and a sprinkle of pearls complete the card - I even remembered to decorate the envelope too!

There are some gorgeous images in the 'Awesomely Artistic' stamp set and you can be sure that you will be seeing more of this set from me. 

Back tomorrow with a new challenge over at The Paper Players; until, then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Awesomely Artistic Clear-Mount Stamp Set	One Big Meaning Clear-Mount Stamp Set	Watercolor Paper	Mint Macaron Classic Stampin' Pad	Mint Macaron A4 Cardstock
Delightful Dijion Classic Stampin' Pad	Tip Top Taupe Classic Stampin' Pad	Very Vanilla A4 Cardstock	1-1/4" Burlap Ribbon	Vintage Faceted Designer Buttons
Pearl Basic Jewels