Well what a busy few days I've had! All the excitement of the new Stampin' Up! Annual Catalogue launch at the UK event in Telford, followed by the release of the list of products that will be retiring at the end of May. Many of you may, like me, have experienced technical issues with the online store last night; I am pleased to report that these have now been fixed and you should experience no problems at all shopping online. Clearly many of you have managed to do so successfully already, given that some items have already sold out and others are showing low inventory. If you still have items on your wishlist that you want to buy, remember that items on the retiring list are available only whilst stocks last and may not be available until the 31 May. Also, if you are purchasing from my online store, don't forget to use the current hostess code UD3KDWM4 to receive a thank you gift from me at the end of the month.  

Today I'm sharing another of the cards from my recent technique class featuring the Rose Wonder stamp set and co-ordinating Rose Garden thinlits dies:

This card is beautifully elegant and not that tricky to create - here's the lowdown:

Clean and White - a cardbase of Extra Thick Whisper White cardstock was used for my card and I cut out the window using my trimmer, cutting a 1cm frame in from each side (you could use your Square Framelits for this too). I used the piece I had cut out to cut an outline of the large flower and leaves with the Rose garden thinlits, with the edges hanging off the edge. This rose then aligns perfectly within the frame with no overhang - like an inlaid die cut.

A Window - I could have simply diecut my flower and adhered it to the edge of the frame, but since I chose to inlay it I needed something to attach it to; I simply backed the frame with a piece of acetate and use this to adhere my rose to. I stamped my simple sentiment, used my hexagon punch to flag the end, then adhered this to the outer edge of the card's frame. The acetate makes the card more robust and offers a nice reflective quality.

Perfectly Artistic - I backed the inside panel of my card with some of the now retired Sale-A-Bration paper 'Perfectly Artistic'. I knew lots of my ladies had this paper and would appreciate some ideas on how to use it and the watercoloured wash provided just the right amount of subtle colour needed. If you don't have any of this paper, you could just as easily watercolour a background using your aquapainter or substitute with other decorative patterned paper.

This card proved very popular with the ladies in my class - I'm expecting to see lots more of these with different colours behind once they've had the chance to experiment at home!

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. 

I'll be back tomorrow with another project; until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Rose Wonder Photopolymer Bundle

Whisper White A4 Thick Cardstock

Basic Black Archival Stampin’ Pad

Window Sheets

Hexagon Punch

I had a little time this afternoon so I had a go at the challenge over at Global Design Project, where this week they are case-ing the designer Jessica Williams:

I don't get the opportunity to play along at GDP as much as I'd like but they do have some great challenges and I particularly like the CASE The Designer ones. Inspiration can strike in many ways and I think this type of challenge is a great way to create something that is clearly inspired by one person's work yet is wholly your own. It also makes for an interesting blog post (hopefully!) that explains where the inspiration for your own take on the original work came from. So, without further ado, here is my card:

So how did Jessica's card inspire me? Read on to find out:

Layout - Whilst I love the layout of Jessica's card, I decided this was one of the things that I was going to change. I used this week's sketch over at Mojo Monday for my card.

Colours - Jessica's colour combination is not one I would ordinarily have chosen, so I decided to work with it to see where it took me. I kept Sahara Sand for my base, although I did major on Watercolour Wonder as opposed to Calypso Coral though, largely on account of my choice of ribbon. Whilst this ribbon is rather wide for a card bow, I liked the rather fancy bow that Jessica used on her card and decided to use my ribbon to make a similar statement. Likewise, whilst I incorporated the black and white colours of Jessica's washi tape borders, I chose to use some Everyday Chic Designer Series Paper for the twin panels on my card. 

Wreath and Sentiment - I recreated the wreath on my card, but instead of using the 'Timeless Love' stamp set, I created my own using the flowers and leaves from the Sale-A-Bration set 'Botanicals For You'. I was also inspired by the sentiment of Jessica's card - I chose one from the 'Suite Sayings' stamp set that has a similar tone. 

Here is the visual summary of the supplies used to make today's card for you to save for easy future reference:

I hope you like my card and found the explanation of my creative process insightful. I'd love to know what you think of my CASE of Jessica's card; do leave me a comment below - I read and appreciate them all!

I'll be back tomorrow with another couple of projects; until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Botanicals For You Wood-Mount Stamp Set	Suite Sayings Clear-Mount Stamp Set	Circles Collection Framelits Dies	Big Shot	Everyday Chic Designer Series Paper
Watermelon Wonder Classic Stampin' Pad	Calypso Coral Classic Stampin' Pad	Wild Wasabi Classic Stampin' Pad	Basic Black Archival Stampin’ Pad	Basic Black A4 Cardstock
Sahara Sand A4 Cardstock	Whisper White A4 Cardstock

It's Sunday and time for a new challenge over at The Paper Players! It's the turn of the talented LeAnne to host our challenge this week and she has my favourite type of challenge, a sketch, for you to play along with:

As it's Easter Sunday today, for my card this week I decided to make one last Easter card to share with you, using this week's colours over at Pals Paper Arts. I'm also linking up with the Friday Mashup again as I've used the theme part of their challenge (Easter and chicks or bunnies - read on and all will become clear!) Here is the front of my card:

Simple enough: some polka dot panels, alongside an oversize flower made with 1 1/2 and 1 3/4 circle punches and the Flower Fair Framelits as a backdrop to my pair of Easter eggs. The eggs themselves are using a tip picked up from Cindy Schuster on the Stampin' Up! corporate blog (you can see her card here) where she used the balloon punch to create Easter Eggs (I stamped mine first using the outline in the 'Balloon Celebration' set and used the grunge stamp in 'Awesomely Artistic' for my mottled effect).

The best bit for me about today's card is the inside, take a look:

Having wrestled with myself every time I went to stick one of the Honeycomb embellishments to the front of my card, knowing that it would mean either a box needed to send it or risk the embellishment being crushed (I'm still suffering post-traumatic stress from having watched Shannon West uncerimoniously squash one on the front of a card whilst on stage at Onstage Live in Brussels last November!!) , I decided that there was a perfect way around it - use it on the inside! I stamped my chick from the 'Honeycomb Happiness' Sale-A-Bration stamp set on the inside of my card along the central score line, paper-pieced him with another stamped on So Saffron card, then added my honeycomb embellishment (I spritzed one of the white ones in So Saffron). I also stamped my Easter greeting from the 'Suite Sayings' stamp set on the inside of my card on the left-hand panel:

Isn't that just the cutest?! I am so happy with how this turned out! I can now use my Honeycomb Embellishments with a clear conscience!

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.  

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 what you create with this week's sketch. We have a rare sport-free day today. We are looking forward to our Easter egg hunt (likely to be indoors if the weather forecast is correct!), a leisurely lunch and an afternoon eating too many chocolate eggs whilst watching a good movie!

Back tomorrow with another project (or two!); until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Honeycomb Happiness Wood-Mount Stamp Set	Flower Fair Framelits Dies	Honeycomb Embellishments	Birthday Blooms Clear-Mount Stamp Set	Suite Sayings Clear-Mount Stamp Set
Mint Macaron Classic Stampin' Pad	Mint Macaron A4 Cardstock	Blushing Bride Classic Stampin' Pad	Blushing Bride A4 Cardstock	So Saffron Classic Stampin' Pad
So Saffron A4 Cardstock	Balloon Celebration Photopolymer Stamp Set	Balloon Bouquet Punch	Subtles Designer Series Paper Stack	Whisper White A4 Cardstock

Good Friday blessings one and all! I've spent most of today outdoors making the most of the sunny weather; I met my girlfriends for a run this morning and we went on a James family bike ride this afternoon. No time to craft, but since the forecast is dreadful for the rest of the week I'm sure I'll make up for it! Today's card is for the challenge over at The Friday Mashup. I love this challenge and am sad to read that this one is their last one!

This week you can use the sketch above or create a project with an Easter theme and chicks or bunnies, or mashup and create with both. I went with the latter for this card, although I do have a mashup card planned for a few days time! Here's today's card:

I actually made this card with the ladies at my Coffee and Card session at Bell's in Northampton this week. The key elements of my fun Easter card are as follows:

An oval egg - I used my Big Shot and Ovals Framelits to create my fun Easter egg in my layer of Pink Pirouette cardstock. Now I know that technically an egg is more pointed at one end, but without an egg framelit this oval makes a pretty good alternative! Before cutting out my oval, I stamped my chick onto the card. Why? Read on below to find out!

An Easter work of art - To decorate my egg, I cut a second mat of white the same size as my pink layer and stamped the large brushstroke stamp from the 'Work of Art' stamp set in a variety of pastel colours and placed this behind the aperture. The curve of the stamped image adds to the illusion of the egg shape.

A happy chick - The little chick from the 'Honeycomb Happiness' Sale-A-Bration set has been getting lots of use this week as he is perfect for Easter cards. I stamped mine onto So Saffron cardstock, snipped him out with my paper scissors and coloured his beak with my Pumpkin Pie Stampin' Write marker. I didn't fussy cut those fiddly legs though - remember the chick I stamped on the pink layer earlier? Yes, I simply coloured the ones on this layer with my Pumpkin Pie Stampin' Write marker and then lined up my yellow chick with the stamp outline, adhering him with a couple of Stampin' Dimensionals. Clever, right? You have just 6 more days to get your hands on the 'Honeycomb Happiness' stamp set for free with a £45 order; if it's on your wish list, don't leave it too late!

An Easter sentiment courtesy of the 'Easter Lamb' stamp and a trio of Itty Bitty punched flowers completes my card. 

Here's the visual summary of the key supplies used to make today's card for you to save for easy reference:

That's all from me today; if you would like to know more about my drop-in Coffee and Card Sessions, you can read all about it here. We have a short break for Easter then the next one is scheduled for 13th April - I'd love to see you there. I'll be back tomorrow with another project. until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Honeycomb Happiness Wood-Mount Stamp Set	Big Shot	Ovals Collection Framelits Dies	Work Of Art Clear-Mount Stamp Set	Itty Bitty Accents Punch Pack
Pearl Basic Jewels	Pear Pizzazz Classic Stampin' Pad	Pear Pizzazz A4 Cardstock	Pink Pirouette Classic Stampin' Pad	Pink Pirouette A4 Cardstock
So Saffron Classic Stampin' Pad	So Saffron A4 Cardstock	Wisteria Wonder Classic Stampin' Pad	Wisteria Wonder A4 Cardstock	Pool Party Classic Stampin' Pad
Brights Stampin' Write Markers	Easter Lamb Wood-Mount Stamp

The middle of the week has arrived - and a short week at that! Today I have a card to share with you for this week's challenge over at TGIF Challenge that also uses the sketch layout at Fab Friday:

I got such lovely comments on my card for last week's TGIF Challenge, that when I saw the badge for this week I just knew it was the perfect opportunity to get out the ice cream patterned paper in the Birthday Blossoms DSP and play along. Here is my card:

My card is a mix of mouth-watering ice-cream in pastel colours, with a little texture and another go at no-line watercolouring. Today's highlights include:

A sweet treat stamp and paper combination - The Birthday Bouquet Designer Series Paper has some gorgeous florals, but also includes a number of great alternative patterns that are perfect for a sweet celebration. I love these soft, watercoloured ice creams and decided to stamp one using the ice-cream stamp in the 'Honeycomb Happiness' Sale-A-Bration stamp set onto watercolour paper and coloured it using inks and my aquapainter to mirror those on the paper. I needed a small sentiment that wouldn't overwhelm my cone, so I trimmed the top part away for a better fit.

A colour combination that's good enough to eat - I love the combination of pale pink and pale green, with the warm brown of soft suede - the ice-creams combine these colours perfectly and the pink and brown make the perfect base for my card. Here's this colour combination if you would like to save it to use on your projects:

Waffle-y Versatile Stylish Stripes - I used the pastels for the horizontal stripes on my card and decided to use Soft Suede to mat my watercoloured image. I don't often use texture and embossing on my cards but decided to create a little more interest with a textured layer that emulated the cone of my ice cream. The Tiny Triangles or Zig Zag Textured Embossing Folders would have been good choices, but since I don't own either of those I embossed my cardstock twice with my trusty Stylish Stripes Textured Impressions Embossing Folder, embossing once then rotating my cardstock through 90 degrees and embossing again to give a criss-cross look. It works for me!

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

I hope you like today's card. As I mentioned yesterday, today is the first day of the school holidays and when I returned from my drop-in Coffee and Card session at Bell of Northampton this morning (I'll be back to share the card we made today later in the week), Rebecca decided that having played outside all morning, she wanted to do something creative this afternoon. So what do you do when two of your greatest passions in life are Lego and craft? Well, you use your Lego Mindstorms to build a robot that you can programme to decorate your Easter eggs! We made a short video to show the results and I thought I'd share here as I thought the results were rather impressive:

Who said school holidays were boring? Not when you're 10 years old and a member of the James family, for sure!

Back tomorrow with this week's card for the new challenge over at Create With Connie and Mary; until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Birthday Bouquet Designer Series Paper	Honeycomb Happiness Clear-Mount Stamp Set	Stylish Stripes Textured Impressions Embossing Folder	Big Shot	Aqua Painters
Watercolor Paper	Blushing Bride Classic Stampin' Pad	Blushing Bride A4 Cardstock	Mint Macaron A4 Cardstock	Soft Suede Classic Stampin' Pad
Soft Suede A4 Cardstock	Chocolate Chip Classic Stampin' Pad	Sahara Sand Classic Stampin' Pad

Here I am with today's post that contains not one but two cards - a variation on a theme! There are only 11 more days left of this year's Sale-A-Bration with Stampin' Up! and I wanted to share with you a couple of cards I made with my most favourite of the second wave of limited-time products that you can receive free with a £45 spend - the Pedal Pusher stamp set. Both cards have been made with a couple of challenges in mind - the first for this week's colour challenge at Color Throwdown:

Having had Wisteria Wonder, a colour I don't use often, out on my desk for yesterday's Paper Players card, I couldn't fail to be inspired by the inspiration photo and decided to ink up my Pedal Pusher Sale-A-Bration stamp set for the first time:

I decided to use the Wisteria Wonder for my card base, but decided my bicycle should be red - somewhat ironic, as my actual bicycle is purple, but it's more of a Rich Razzleberry colour, so not one for this card. Anyway, I digress! I added a strip of Cucumber Crush 'Cherry on Top' designer washi tape horizontally across my card, stamping my bicycle above it, coloured with my Stampin' Write Markers, and my sentiment below it. I added some retired Wisteria Wonder baker's twine and a retired button from my stash to finish this card. 

The Pedal Pusher stamp set is just great for so many reasons - here's my top 3:

It's versatile - there are so many little pieces to customise your bicycle, including three sentiments all of which play on the tandem bicycle theme.

It's photopolymer - makes aligning all the pieces easy-peasy and allows for perfect stamping every time.

It's free - with a £45 spend before 31st March.

Here's the visual summary of the supplies used to make today's card for easy reference:

To demonstrate its versatility, for my second card I went a little more clean and simple and restricted my colour palette to white, Melon Mambo and Basic Black, adding an alternative sentiment and basket contents:

This time I coloured my bike using some Melon Mambo ink and my aquapainter and I also added a little clear Wink of Stella to my floating hearts for a nice shimmer. How cute is that?! The perfect card to let a friend know you are thinking of them. I'm linking this card up with the lovely ladies over at Less Is More this week, where the theme is 'what's outside your window'. Whilst I'm guessing a bicycle might not be the most obvious choice for some, now that Spring has sprung my bicycle will often be found outside my window - before I get on it and join my hubby and the James juniors for a long bike ride. With school holidays starting from tomorrow, I am hoping for lots of fine weather and the chance to indulge in this pleasant past time. 

Here's the visual summary of the supplies used to make the above card for easy reference:

That's all from me today; I'm off to squeeze in a quick trip to Ikea (if there is such a thing!) before going to watch Rebecca in her final school netball match of the season. Yesterday both James Juniors played basketball for school and were narrowly beaten into second place in their county qualifier, however Rebecca's club hockey match had a much more successful outcome, with her team earning a place at the U12 regional finals next month. Go Northampton Saints Hockey! The netball team cam third out of five in last week's inter-school netball tournament, so it would be nice for the girls to end the season with a win - here's hoping! 

Back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Card 1:

Pedal Pusher Photopolymer Stamp Set

Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad

Wisteria Wonder A4 Cardstock

Cherry On Top Designer Washi Tape

Many Marvelous Markers

Card 2: 

Pedal Pusher Photopolymer Stamp Set	Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad	Melon Mambo Classic Stampin' Pad	Melon Mambo A4 Cardstock	Whisper White A4 Cardstock
Aqua Painters	Clear Wink Of Stella Glitter Brush	Baker's Twine Combo Pack

It's Sunday and time for a new challenge over at The Paper Players! It's the turn of our very own Birthday Girl, the lovely Jaydee, to host our challenge this week and she has a fun clean and simple theme for you to play along with:

So along with Jaydee's birthday - happy birthday wishes to you Jaydee! - we are also celebrating the arrival of Spring! For my card this week I was inspired to use the cute little chick from the Sale-A-Bration Honeycomb Happiness stamp set, this time in conjunction with the floral spray in the 'Number of Years' stamp set. I used this week's layout over at Freshly Made Sketches for my card - take a look:

Key points to note about today's card:

More than a number - The 'Number of Years' stamp set is big on numbers, but it also has this lovely floral spray which can be used in conjunction with the other stamps in the set or for something totally different, as I've done here. The watercolour-effect stamp was the perfect pairing for my no-line watercoloured chick today. I stamped it twice, masking my chick once so that some of the stems appeared behind for depth of field, then went over the top with my aquapainter to further enhance to watercoloured effect. 

No-line watercolouring - I've used this technique with this same little chick previously (you can see that card here). Today I wanted to use soft pastels and delicate colouring to have him peeking out of the spring flowers, so no-line watercolouring was the perfect solution. I stamped him in Sahara Sand and coloured him in So Saffron and Daffodil Delight with my aquapainter to give him a realistic finish.

Sketches are open to interpretation - Kim's sketch is great but I needed my chick to be grounded and not floating in mid-air, so I rotated the sketch through 180 degrees (this is allowed!) I used the floral spray to give the circular shape within the sketch without adding another layer to my card and keep it looking 'clean and simple'.

A bold Hello - With such delicate watercoloured pastels, I decided to stamp my sentiment in Versamark on Basic Black and heat emboss in white to give my sentiment some prominence. I then punched this out with my Word Window Punch. A nice contrast I think to the softness of the rest of my card.

I'm also linking up my card today with the challenge over at Addicted to CAS, where the current theme is 'delicate' and SUO Challenges where the theme is 'welcome Spring'.

Here's today's visual summary of the key products used on today's card for easy reference:

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 what you create with this week's clean and simple theme. We have a jam-packed day of sport today: hockey and basketball training, followed by a hockey tournament, lunch and then both James Juniors are playing in a basketball match. I'm thinking we need to start the day with at least two Weetabix each to get us through to dinner!!

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Number Of Years Photopolymer Stamp Set	Honeycomb Happiness Wood-Mount Stamp Set	Aqua Painters	Watercolor Paper	Sahara Sand Classic Stampin' Pad
So Saffron Classic Stampin' Pad	Daffodil Delight Classic Stampin' Pad	Wisteria Wonder Classic Stampin' Pad	Wild Wasabi Classic Stampin' Pad	Pink Pirouette Classic Stampin' Pad
Pumpkin Pie Classic Stampin' Pad	Basic Black Stampin' Write Marker	Basic Black A4 Cardstock	Embossing Buddy	Versamark Pad
White Stampin' Emboss Powder	Heat Tool (Uk)	Word Window Punch	Wisteria Wonder A4 Cardstock

Yay it's Friday! My day feels like it's been a long one and I am looking forward to the weekend for sure! Today I have a card for this week's challenge over at Retrosketches which also fits the bill for the new challenge over at As You See It:

I decided to make another Easter card, this time using some of my Sale-A-Bration Wildflower Fields designer series paper and the lovely Easter sentiment in the 'Suite Sayings' stamp set:

I used extra-thick Whisper White for my card base and added alternating strips of the bold flower patterned papers for my background. I tweaked the sketch slightly in as much as I used the central panel to showcase my sentiment, which broke up the detail of the busy paper, and chose Blackberry Bliss and Hello Honey for my ink, mats and ribbon colours. I embellished with a few flowers punched with my Petite Petals and Blossom Bunch punches and a retired Hello Honey button. This is the first stamp I've used in my 'Suite Sayings' stamp set; this is such a versatile set with a great variety of sentiments - I think this Easter one is my favourite though.  

Here's today's visual reference showing the key supplies used to make today's card:

That's all from me today; back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Suite Sayings Clear-Mount Stamp Set	Wildflower Fields Designer Series Paper	Blackberry Bliss Classic Stampin' Pad	Blackberry Bliss A4 Cardstock	Hello Honey A4 Cardstock
Whisper White A4 Thick Cardstock	Lost Lagoon A4 Cardstock	Petite Petals Punch	Blossom Bunch Punch	Regals Candy Dots

Happy Monday everyone! I have a card made with a few challenges in mind today:

I was keen to try out an idea I had for this week's challenge over at CASology where the cue card is 'egg' and decided to use the open sketch over at Freshly Made Sketches for my layout. I've seen lots of cards on Pinterest featuring no-line watercolouring this week, so wanted to have a go using the little chick in the 'Honeycomb Happiness' stamp set, one of a number of Sale-A-Bration stamp sets that is free with a £45 spend before 31st March. I will also be linking up to SUO Challenges where the team are featuring Sale-A-Bration products in their challenge this week. Here's my card:

How cute is this little fella? I think he is adorable! I stamped my chick onto watercolour paper in Sahara Sand, then watercoloured him using my aquapainter and So Saffron, Daffodil Delight and Crushed Curry inks. The key to no-line watercolouring is to make sure that when you stamp your initial image you use a light-coloured ink that 'disappears' as you colour in. Having painted his whole self, I then proceeded to cover him up! I fussy cut an eggshell, also from watercolour paper, then coloured it with my Soft Sky ink and adhered it over my chick so that it looked like he was just breaking out of his shell. Some shadow and a sentiment finished this panel. I then added a thin strip of Everyday Chic designer series paper along the edge, having coloured in the pattern with my Daffodil Delight and Crushed Curry Stampin' Write markers, before adhering to my Daffodil Delight card base with dimensionals. I really enjoyed my first attempt at this style of watercolouring and I can see me using this chick in lot of other ways too. He will undoubtedly be useful as Easter approaches, but he would also make a cute addition to a baby card. The one thing I'm not sure about in hindsight is the strip of dsp - I think it's a little bold for the rest of my card. 

Here is today's visual summary for easy reference:

That's all from me today; I'll be back tomorrow with a super cute project for this week's challenge over at Pals Paper Arts. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Honeycomb Happiness Clear-Mount Stamp Set	Watercolor Paper	Daffodil Delight A4 Cardstock	Everyday Chic Designer Series Paper	Aqua Painters
Basic Black Archival Stampin’ Pad	Sahara Sand Classic Stampin' Pad	So Saffron Classic Stampin' Pad	Daffodil Delight Classic Stampin' Pad	Crushed Curry Classic Stampin' Pad
Pumpkin Pie Classic Stampin' Pad	Tangerine Tango Classic Stampin' Pad	Tangelo Twist Classic Stampin' Pad	Soft Sky Classic Stampin' Pad

Happy Monday everyone! I hope you all enjoyed a wonderful Valentine's Day yesterday with your loved ones - I certainly did. I shared some of the fun of my day over on my Facebook page - be sure to follow me there for more adhoc Crafty Owl fun! As well as today's card today, I have some important reminders for you: today is your last chance to purchase the limited time Sale-A-Bration gifts: Perfectly Artistic designer series paper and the 'Sky is the Limit' and 'Hello' stamp sets. Here are a few of my projects featuring these items to remind you - all of them have been very popular free gifts so far during the Sale-A-Bration promotion:

For my card today I am using my favourite of these sets, 'Hello', once again. This is my card for this week's colour challenge over at Pals Paper Arts; I also used this week's Retrosketches sketch:

The lovely Katy McGloin chose the colour palette over at Pals Paper Arts this week and whilst this isn't a colour palette I would have put together myself, I loved the design team cards so decided I should have a go! This is what I came up with: 

I chose to feature a piece of the Pretty Petals designer series paper for my main panel, stamping the 'Hello' stamp in Lost Lagoon with a Calypso Coral border on the top panel of Very Vanilla and layering this with a piece of Venetian crochet trim across the join. I heat embossed the 'birthday girl' portion of my sentiment onto a banner of Lost Lagoon and fussy cut some co-ordinating flowers and leaves from another of the papers in the Pretty Petals DSP stack, along with a few pearls, to embellish my card. As my regular readers will know, I'm not one for vintage or shabby chic generally, but I absolutely love the softness of this card that this colour palette gives - what a great combination! This stamp set is so very versatile - I just know it will be a 'keeper' for me. 

If you want to get your hands on this set, or one of the other limited time offer items, you will need to place an order for £45 or more today. If you miss this deadline the good news is there are three new limited sets arriving tomorrow; pop back then for more information!

Enjoy the rest of your day; I'll be back tomorrow with another project, until then happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Hello Clear-Mount Stamp Set	Pretty Petals Designer Series Paper Stack	Lost Lagoon Classic Stampin' Pad	Lost Lagoon A4 Cardstock	Very Vanilla A4 Cardstock
Calypso Coral Classic Stampin' Pad	Venetian Crochet Trim	Pearl Basic Jewels	Embossing Buddy	Versamark Pad
White Stampin' Emboss Powder	Heat Tool (Uk)	Hexagon Punch