Today I'm sharing my design team card for our new challenge over at As you See It where Jane has a theme challenge for us:

It's that time of year when lots of people are getting married so Jane's choice of theme is a timely one. I decided to use one of my new stamp set and stencil sets to revisit an 'oldie but goodie' technique for my wedding card - take a look:

Here's the low-down on today's card:

Layers of Beauty - The stamp set I featured on today's card is called 'Layers of Beauty' and comes with a set of co-ordinating dies and layering stencils and I think it's going to be a new favourite! The main stamp is a large floral arrangement of roses and can be used in so many ways. I stamped it in black onto my Basic White card base and left it uncoloured, then stamped it again on another sheet of cardstock to create my spotlight. 

Stencilled Spotlight - With my second image, I used my stencils to colour the flowers in Real Red and the leaves in Garden Green. The stencils are amazing - with only 2 colours, it's possible to create flowers that are full of depth. I chose these colours from the Color Dare challenge because red roses are the language of love and romance and whilst I wouldn't normally go so bold on a wedding card, I think it suits a demonstration of this technique. Once coloured using my inks and blending brushes, I used a Stylish Shapes Circle Dies to cut out a circle, then carefully pieced it onto my black and white design, using dimensionals for a little lift:

I was reminded of the spotlight technique with Inkspirational's current challenge; I haven't made a card using it in ages so it was a fun one to revisit.

Sentiment Creativity - I didn't have any current sentiments for a wedding card, so I went on a rummage through my retired stash to see what I could find. Interestingly I couldn't find anything that said 'wedding' specifically, although I'm sure I must have some somewhere. There were lots of congratulations and celebrate sentiments though and in the end I settled with a combination of 'celebrate together' from the retired 'Create With Friends' stamp set. I trio of white sequins complete my card.

I really love this set and can't wait to use it more. I'm also linking today's card up over at Just Us Girls where it's 'anything goes stencil week'; so happy to have added this one to my collection!

Here is the visual summary of the key products used on today's project for you to pin for easy reference:

You can see all of my 'How To' summaries on my 'How To - Tips and Techniques' Pinterest board in case you've missed any. 

Here's a summary of our challenge rules:

• Create any card, scrapbooking page, 3D project or packaging project that fits the challenge.
• Please include the challenge graphic and link back to the challenge in your blog post. Turn off word verification so we can leave you lots of lovely comments. Make sure you link the post not the whole blog to the Linky. Use #AYSIXXX when uploading to a public gallery.
• If you’re unsure about ‘the rules’, check the details under the Challenge Guidelines tab on the As You See It Challenge homepage.

Enjoy your day and I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

LAYERS OF BEAUTY PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (19.00)	LAYERS OF BEAUTY DECORATIVE MASKS (13.00)	STYLISH SHAPES DIES (28.00)	TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (7.50)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (10.50)	REAL RED CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)
GARDEN GREEN CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	BLENDING BRUSHES (14.00)	ADHESIVE-BACKED SEQUINS TRIO (7.50)

You all know what a fan I am of Stampin' Up!'s kits - they make for a perfect crafty evening in with friends, whether you are a seasoned crafter or have never crafted before and would like to try something new. Kits are fun, quick and easy and all-inclusive so there's nothing to buy and nothing to store afterwards and with so many different styles and types, there's something for everyone. During August you can save up to 30% on all kits - what could be better?! You don't need a code - all kits have already been discounted in the online store - links to each of those currently available are below; I'll be sharing details on some of my favourites on social media during this month, but I just want to draw your attention to some recent new additions, including the Festive Tags kit that launches today:

If you would like to start crafting handmade creations for Christmas and New Year, the Festive Tags Kit has everything you need to create 15 festive gift tags in less than an hour - no stamping required! There are several other Christmas card and tag kits in the online store too, so definitely worth a look.

Another recently launched stamping kit is the Boho Beach kit:

This all-inclusive kit comes with everything you need to make eight beautiful beach-inspired cards. Send a friendly note to the people you love and don’t miss the acrylic-poured paint art style used in this kit for a dazzling marbled colour effect! It’s time to take a well-deserved break, sit back, and take friends and family to the beach from the comfort of your home!

Finally the Blossom Wishes Kit:

Celebrate your friends with special slimline cards from the Blossom Wishes Kit! With vellum blossoms and foiled details, you can quickly put together a fun paper craft! This kit also comes with pre-cut sentiments in Dutch, English, French, and German, so you can send a card and say hello to friends near and far.

Kits make great gifts too - you can make up the projects and then give them away for someone else to use or give them an unopened kit to bring them crafting pleasure of their own and there are some great kits for children, including the fun Love This Memory Notebook - this could be a fun way to record and document vacation activities:

To get your hands on a discounted kit, you can either get in touch to place your order or alternatively visit my online store. Or if you would like to arrange a 'kit together' event with friends for a fun evening out, then do get in touch!

As with all kits, they are available whilst stocks last; the online store will show a full range of what is currently available; to purchase, simply click on the links below. Happy shopping!

FESTIVE TAGS KIT (11.70)	BOHO BEACH KIT (ENGLISH) (18.90)	CONFETTI BIRTHDAY KIT (ENGLISH) (19.80)	FOREVER FRIENDS KIT (ENGLISH) (18.00)	COLORFUL KALEIDOSCOPE KIT (ENGLISH) (19.80)	LOVE TREATS KIT (ENGLISH) (15.40)
TIMELESS GREETINGS KIT (ENGLISH) (17.60)	CHRISTMAS GIFTING KIT (ENGLISH) (16.80)	COZY & BRIGHT KIT (ENGLISH) (17.60)	LOVE THIS MEMORY NOTEBOOK KIT (ENGLISH) (16.80)	THE BEST REMEDY KIT (ENGLISH) (17.60)	A MILLION THANKS KIT (ENGLISH) (16.80)
KINDNESS CARDS KIT (ENGLISH) (15.40)	ROBOT BUDDIES KIDS CARD KIT (ENGLISH) (15.40)	LIGHT THE CANDLES CARD KIT (ENGLISH) (18.90)	LOVE, SANTA TAG KIT (ENGLISH) (14.70)	CHRISTMAS WHIMSY CARD KIT (ENGLISH) (14.70)	SENTIMENTAL ROSE CARD KIT (ENGLISH) (18.90)
A LITTLE SMILE CARD KIT (ENGLISH) (14.00)	YOU ARE MY ANCHOR CARD KIT (ENGLISH) (14.00)	BLOSSOM WISHES KIT (11.70)	WREATH OF BLOOMS KIT (11.70)	SAYING THANKS KIT (11.70)	BIRTHDAY CARD ORGANIZER KIT (19.20)
CELEBRATE TODAY MAGNET BOARD KIT (16.80)	PETAL NOTES CARD KIT (9.10)	NOTES OF CHEER CARD KIT (11.70)	KERCHIEF CARD KIT (9.10)	PRECIOUS PARCEL CARD KIT (9.10)

Today I'm sharing a card for the current challenge over at CAS on Friday where the challenge is to use a stencil. I chose a favourite colour combination of yellow and navy blue and came up with this sunny creation to contrast with the grey clouds that seem ever present here in the UK at the moment:

Here's the low-down on today's card:

Instead of stencilling the whole of the floral image across the centre, I added a partial stencil along two edges of my main panel, in order to preserve the all important 'white space'. I layered a selection of yellows for depth, then inked a sentiment from 'Create With Friends' and overstamped the edge of one of my floral clusters:

A couple of thin borders completes my card.

Here is the visual summary of the key products used on today's project for you to pin for easy reference:

You can see all of my 'How To' summaries on my 'How To - Tips and Techniques' Pinterest board in case you've missed any. 

If I was making this card again, I'd probably move the florals in the bottom left corner out even further, showing less florals and more white - next time! I really love these stencils; I do have to be careful to not get either too enthusiastic with my blending brushes or put my inky fingers across the clean white areas on my card. If this happens to you too, all is not lost; with a 'ruined' card that was the pre-cursor to today's creation, I simply chopped around the offending smudge and converted the remains into gift tags for my in-person customer orders:

Waste not, want not and all that! Enjoy your day and I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

BUTTERFLIES & FLOWERS LAYERING DECORATIVE MASKS (£9.25)	CREATE WITH FRIENDS PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (£9.60)	DAFFODIL DELIGHT A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	DAFFODIL DELIGHT CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)	SO SAFFRON CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)
BUMBLEBEE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)	PEAR PIZZAZZ CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)	NIGHT OF NAVY CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)	NIGHT OF NAVY A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£7.75)

Happy hump day! Today I'm sharing a card I made with a few challenges in mind:

The team over at Less Is More are looking for a single word sentiment on a one layer card and I combined this with the current code word of 'hat' over at CASology this month. I was also inspired by Time Out's 8th Birthday celebrations where I used the colours from their badge too for my clean and simple birthday card. Although I'm too late to link up there, I thought you might like to see the badge and colours - my favourite purples! This is the card I came up with - take a look:

Here's the low-down on today's card:

I went with a super-simple 'Celebrate' from the 'Create With Friends' stamp set in Gorgeous Grape and added a party hat coloured with Stampin' Write markers at a jaunty angle to the C - this little gem is to be found in the 'Turtle Friends' set. The two-tone confetti is courtesy of the retired stamp set 'Praiseworthy Prose', which also gave me the perfect greeting for the inside of my card:

And that's my card - stamps, ink and paper, #simplestamping at its best!

Here is the visual summary of the key products used on today's project for you to pin for easy reference:

You can see all of my 'How To' summaries on my 'How To - Tips and Techniques' Pinterest board in case you've missed any. 

Enjoy your day and I'll be back tomorrow with another couple of projects. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

CREATE WITH FRIENDS PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (£16.00)	TURTLE FRIENDS PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (£15.00)	GORGEOUS GRAPE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)	FRESH FREESIA CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)	FLIRTY FLAMINGO CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£7.75)
MANY MARVELOUS MARKERS (£112.75)