Happy Wednesday everybody! Today is a good day - the sun is shining again, my Autumn-Winter pre-order has arrived so I have lots of Halloween and Christmas goodies to play with, there's a new bunch of weekly deals (see earlier post here) and it's time for this week's Colour Me...! Challenge, where we have a monochromatic colour challenge this week using Pistachio Pudding and a neutral:

I thought this challenge would be trickier than it actually was. I used the latest sketch from the Deconstructed Sketch for my layout and inked up my new Kinda Eclectic stamp set which I have been keen to get working with - here's my card: 

For my card I used a base of Pistachio Pudding, then layered one of the die-cut pieces from the now retired Simply Sent card kit in last year's annual catalogue. I added some Pistachio Pudding polka dot paper from the All Abloom DSP stack, then stamped the sunburst from Kinda Eclectic in Pistachio Pudding onto Whisper White and cut out using my Big Shot and Circles Framelits and cut the bottom third off the circle. For the central banner, I stamped the spots in Pistachio Pudding on the cardstock of the same colour, then stamped my sentiment in Versamark and heat embossed in White embossing powder over the top to add additional dimension. Lastly, I replaced the flags in the sketch with the butterflies from Kinda Eclectic, stamped in Pistachio Pudding onto Whisper White cardstock and punched out using the co-ordinating punches. I think the key to a single colour card where you are using one single colour plus a neutral, and don't have then benefit of tonal shades of the same colour, is to add layers, patterns and shapes for extra interest. If you're based in the UK and Europe, the Pistachio Pudding ink pad is on this week's Wednesday Weekly Deals List too and can be yours for just £3.71 instead of the usual £4.95 this week, so if you needed an incentive to have a go at this week's challenge, this is it!

I look forward to seeing what you come up with in the gallery this week - meanwhile, check out what the other designers have in store for you over at Colour Me and our new featured guest designer for the month of August.

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Pistachio Pudding Classic Stampin' Pad	Kinda Eclectic Clear-Mount Stamp Set	All Abloom Designer Series Paper Stack	Whisper White A4 Card Stock	Card Stock A4 Pistachio Pudding
Elegant Butterfly Punch	Bitty Butterfly Punch	Circles Collection Framelits Dies	Big Shot Die-Cut Machine	Magnetic Platform
Heat Tool - Uk Plug	Embossing Buddy	Versamark Pad	White Stampin' Emboss Powder

I've had a busy day today preparing for tomorrow's Spring Banner class - photos to follow - and working on some other projects, so just time for a quick post today. I'm sharing a thank you card designed by Monica Gale that we made at our January team training session:

This is a lovely pastel card featuring the orchid stamp from the 'Happy Watercolour' set'. It is stamped onto a scallop topped tag and coloured with Stampin' Write markers and a blender pen and layered on a few layers of Sale-A-Bration Sweet Sorbet DSP in co-ordinating colours. along with an offcut from one of the laser-cut cards from the 'Simply Fabulous Simply Sent' kit sets. Some background stamping and a banner are stamped with two of the other stamps in the 'Happy Watercolour' set and the tag is finished with some ribbon and rhinestones to complete the look.

Come back tomorrow to see the outputs from tomorrow's Spring Banner class; until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Happy Watercolor	Scalloped Tag Topper Punch	Simply Fabulous Simply Sent	Card Stock A4 Pistachio Pudding	Whisper White A4 Card Stock
Pool Party A4 Card Stock	Pistachio Pudding Classic Stampin' Pad	Crisp Cantaloupe Classic Stampin' Pad	Pool Party Classic Stampin' Pad	Jet Black Stazon Pad
Blender Pens	Crisp Cantaloupe 3/8" Ruffle Stretch Trim	Scallop Edge Border Punch

Good evening blog readers! Today I'm going to share a scrapbook page with you that I made at a recent team training event and designed by the lovely Bekka Prideaux. It features a number of the Sweet Sorbet paper designs and the Petal Parade stamp set - both items that can be yours free during Sale-A-Bration with an order of £45 or more - some new Spring-Summer items and a somewhat overlooked item in the annual catalogue (more on that in a moment). So here is my scrapbook layout:

I decided to use one of my summer holiday photos of Rebecca and Ben as the centrepiece; I have so many amazing photographs from our holiday that I have yet to do something with, so this seemed a good opportunity to start. They are participating in one of my favourite activities at a Disney theme park - no not a roller coaster, but the ritual eating of a Mickey ice-cream bar (I am rather partial to these!) - and the concentration on their faces is a concerted attempt to get them eaten before they melt in the extreme heat!

The bright colours and patterns in the papers make a great background for my photo. Did you spot the 'hidden treasure' from the annual catalogue? The photograph is mounted on to one of the Simply Fabulous Simply Sent cards, with another attached to the Scallop tag Topper Punch piece behind for hidden journaling. These cards are great for quick cards but can also be used for journaling or as a photo mount. Lastly, a fringe cut using the new fringe scissors adds texture and draws the eye in to the focal point.

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: