It's Tuesday and time for a new challenge over at CAS Colours & Sketches. This week's challenge is our final challenge of the year and as such Patricia has decided that we can have free reign this week! We can choose any challenge from 2021 and make it seasonal. So whether you decide on a sketch, colour palette or even the double, you can choose whichever you prefer - just make it seasonal! It's also our milestone 450th challenge and there are prizes to be won - yay! - so be sure to play along! I decided to go with challenge 443:

You can see my original card for sketch 443 here along with the sketch itself. For my card today I have definitely gone with a 'less is more' look and kept things simple - take a look:

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

I decided to use one of the diecut snowflakes from the Wonderful Snowflakes pack and used that to accent my label, which is stamped and heat-embossed in white with one of the sentiments form the 'Snowflake Wishes' stamp set. It's difficult to see in the photo, but I then overstamped the word 'sparkle' again and sprinkled it with (retired) Dazzling Diamonds glitter before heat-embossing a second time. Along with the opal rounds, it adds such a lovely sparkle:

The white of the sentiment and snowflake really stand out against my bold blue background. I actually used (retired) Blueberry Bushel cardstock for my card, but you could achieve a similar effect with the current Pacific Point (links included below). A verse and simple border decoration using stamps from the same set inside complete my card: 

This is the perfect design for some last-minute festive card making as it would be really easy to put a batch of these together in no time. Definitely the kind of card I need this close to Christmas! 

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.

This is our final CAS Colours & Sketches challenge of the year and we are sad to be saying goodbye to several of the team. On a positive note we are also welcoming a number of new members too - full details are over on the CAS Colours & Sketches main blog where you will also see our new members are playing along this week. Following this challenge the team will be taking a short break to enjoy the festivities with our loved ones before we return with a new challenge for the new year on January 4th when I will be hosting again and I will have a fun colour challenge for you!

Enjoy your day and I'll be back at some point with another project; my design commitments for 2021 are complete and I am about to start working with a whole new bunch of products to get ready for 2022. I will undoubtedly have projects to share over the festive break, but will be following a more relaxed schedule as I take time out to regroup and recharge, so watch this space. Until next time, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

SNOWFLAKE WISHES PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£24.00)	WONDERFUL SNOWFLAKES (£5.50)	PACIFIC POINT A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	OPAL ROUNDS (£7.00)	STITCHED SO SWEETLY DIES (£30.00)	VERSAMARK PAD (£8.75)
BASICS EMBOSSING POWDERS (£17.00)

This week I've managed to combine both my card for the new challenge over at Festive Friday and my design team card for our new challenge over at As you See It and also used the idea I had brewing for my entry  over at AAA Cards too:

The challenge that we are celebrating this week at Festive Friday is 'New Year's Day' which is on 1st January and at As You See it we are ending the year on a timely speed stamping challenge with the theme of 'snowflakes'. Remember at Festive Friday you do not need to actually celebrate the occasion; your goal is to simply use three or more items from the inspiration list on your project. I don't usually send cards to celebrate New Year; this week I used sparkle, rhinestones and diecuts from the FF inspo list and this is what I came up with:

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

Giving Gifts Of Snowflakes - If you read Wednesday's blog post (if you didn't, you can see it here) you will recognise the snowflake border on my card. This was actually the first card in this pair that I made - clever positioning of these dies makes it easier to create this fun snowflake border detail. In keeping with the clean and simple feel of my card, I added a simple sentiment from the 'Snowflake Wishes' stamp set in Night of Navy and positioned it in the centre of my panel. I also had time for some quick stamping on the inside of my card too:

Blue Ombre Sparkle - I am having something of a love affair with the Night of Navy blue ombre glimmer paper at the moment - I could do with a whole pack of this colour on its own! I think it works really well when balanced against lots of white for a touch of festive sparkle, especially when paired with snowflakes (you can see another example of that here) so I couldn't resist using it for the inset panel behind my snowflakes. Check out the sparkle:

The Need For Speed - This card was super quick to put together: I finished at 6 minutes and 5 seconds and was feeling pretty pleased with my self in meeting my AYSI brief. It was at this point that I realised that having used diecuts and sparkle, I only needed one more thing from the Festive Friday inspo list and I would meet both briefs and save myself even more time, so I spent another 20 seconds adding some blue faceted gems (aka blue rhinestones!) to my snowflake centres and managed at 6 minutes 25 seconds to meet the AYSI speed brief using three things from the FF inspo list whilst still meeting the AAA Cards CAS brief, and with the option of snow too! Just 6 products, 3 challenges and less that 10 minutes - I'd say that's a result at this super-busy time of year!

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. 

We all need to save a little time at this time of year, so I hope you are inspired to create something speedy today - or maybe even get a head start on your New Year cards too!

For more inspiration, be sure to visit the rest of the  Festive Friday Challenge Design team:

Ann Schach
Beth McCullough
Sharon Hashimoto Burkert
Melanie Hungerford
Helen Jennings
Stephanie Lanzalotto
Melva Peters
Jaydee
Diane Evans
Joanne James

And here's a summary of the As You See It 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.
• In a speed stamping challenge, please time yourself and say in your post how long your card took to complete. 

Enjoy your day; I am interrupting my usual day of Friday chores with a coffee with a friend I haven't seen in a super long time and my pre-Christmas haircut, so it's all happening here!! I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

SNOWFLAKE WISHES PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£24.00)

OMBRE 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) SPECIALTY PAPER (£9.25)

BLUE ADHESIVE-BACKED GEMS (£7.50)

BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£7.75)

NIGHT OF NAVY CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)

Happy Monday everyone! It's the start of a busy week here in the James household and I'm squeeking in with an early post using Cecile's fabulous sketch over at Freshly Made Sketches before I get ready for my final online card class of the year! Here is Cecile's sketch:

I still had those Peaceful Place papers out on my desk over the weekend and was cutting out log cabins with abandon, so knew that I had to use the sketch to feature another one - take a look:

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

I fussy cut another house and coloured my log cabin scene with my watercolour pencils and blended them with a blender pen, adding a liberal coat of clear Wink of Stella to the trees and snowy roof. Then came my moment of indecisiveness! I added a fussy cut fir tree for one of the sketch elements and I had decided that I was going to use my Stitched Snowflake Dies to add two snowflake impressions into my card base for the other two, however when I created my background in basic white it seemed a little flat. So I cut another panel, this time in Shimmery White, which was a little better, but still seemed to lack a little sparkle. So I went all-out and used a panel of (retired) white glimmer paper. This I LOVE - but it did prove difficult to photograph so that you could see the diecut snowflakes, amidst all that sparkle! I'm hoping you can see the idea a little better below:

As tricky as it was to capture on film, I absolutely love the sparkle and shimmer that a whole panel of glimmer paper adds and the diecut cut snowflake impressions are really effective in real life. A simple sentiment was all I needed to complete my card. So what do you think - is there ever something such as too much sparkle? I think not, but if you disagree, feel free to comment below! My super sparkly snowflakes are also perfect for a second play over at Inspired By this week - the first of their inspiration photos suggests they love a bit of snowflake sparkle!

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. 

It is so grey, wet and miserable here today I would definitely rather escape to my little log cabin in the snow. Alas, no such luck - my class ladies are calling and wouldn't be too impressed! Enjoy your day and I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

PEACEFUL PLACE 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) SPECIALTY DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£14.00)	LAYERING CIRCLES DIES (£33.00)	TIDINGS & TRIMMINGS PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£17.00)	BASIC GRAY A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	BASIC BLACK A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)
BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£9.00)	BASICS EMBOSSING POWDERS (£17.00)	VERSAMARK PAD (£8.75)	WATERCOLOR PENCILS (£15.00)	WATERCOLOR PENCILS ASSORTMENT 2 (£11.75)
WINK OF STELLA GLITTER BRUSH (£7.50)

Today it's Sunday and time for this week's new challenge over at The Paper Players! It's the turn of the fabulous Jaydee to host this week and she has a festive theme challenge for us to work with:

We've had snow twice this week in my part of the world and the current freezing temperatures are definitely showing early signs of a winter wonderland! I decided to make another card using the current colours over at The Color Throwdown and decided to get creative with my Peaceful Place designer series papers and create my own idyllic winter wonderland - take a look:

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

Peaceful Place - I decided to fussy cut one of the log cabins from the Peaceful Place designer paper, across the upper horizon including some trees, and added this to a precut white circle, that I had added Polished Pink ink to with a blending brush and stamped on some snowflakes in Encore silver. I allowed the trees to overhang the circle border and liberally brushed the snowy areas of the scene with clear Wink of Stella. It's difficult to see on the photos, but this card is so sparkly in real life!

Evergreen Forest - I used another sheet of Peaceful Place designer series paper for my background, this time the sparkly silver snowflakes on a mottled grey background. I ran this panel through the Evergreen Forest Embossing folder to add a row of embossed fir trees to the background for added interest. Again, it's easier to see in real life - the texture adds subtle additional detail. I used the pink for my sentiment banner and borders for a pop of colour against the silver and grey:

Don't Forget The Inside - I carried the winter wonderland theme over to the inside of my card, adding a strip of the sparkly snowflake paper along with a couple of fussy-cut trees and a sentiment from the 'Snowflake Wishes' stamp set:

Doesn't that cosy log cabin look inviting? I could totally hole myself up there with my craft supplies and a roaring log fire for a week or two! 

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 Product and '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:

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

PEACEFUL PLACE 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) SPECIALTY DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£14.00)	LAYERING CIRCLES DIES (£33.00)	CHRISTMAS TO REMEMBER CLING STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£20.00)	EVERGREEN FOREST 3D EMBOSSING FOLDER (£9.25)	POLISHED PINK A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	BASIC GRAY A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)
BLENDING BRUSHES (£11.25)	POLISHED PINK CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)	VERSAMARK PAD (£8.75)	METALLICS EMBOSSING POWDERS (£17.00)	SILVER FOIL 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) SPECIALTY PACK (£9.25)

Today I have a card that was inspired by this week's Color Throwdown colours that finally gave me the opportunity to get out on paper an idea that's been floating around in my head for a while:

The Peaceful Place designer series papers have some great designs that are perfect for adding colour to or creating scenes and the grey and silver were perfect with the addition of some Polished Pink to create a scenic Winter Wonderland - take a look:

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

Peaceful Place - One of the designs in the Peaceful Place pack comprises 4 6"x6" designs of a landscape of snowy trees. I cut the sheet into 4 then cut the bottom off each square and using a blending brush, I added some Polished Pink ink to the outer edges of the panel. I also added some stamped pink snowflakes, before flicking the paper with water then Frosted shimmer paint for splatter detail. I added another contrasting piece of paper for a border along the bottom of my card, along with a double ribbon bow.

Well Defined - I split the 'winter' sentiment in the 'Well Defined' stamp set and added the first part to a label on the front of my card, with the remainder on the inside to complete my sentiment:

I carried the winter wonderland theme over to the inside of my card, adding a strip of the sparkly snowflake paper along with a couple of fussy-cut trees and a sentiment from the 'Snowflake Wishes' stamp set.

I liked this card so much I made a second one at the same time - here's a shot of them both together:

I made two of these in the same colours to save time, but I think it would look great in other colours too. I think I'm going to cut up more of my paper and make some with Balmy Blue ink next.  

I'm also linking today's card up for a second entry into the current Christmas challenge over at SUO Challenges.

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 Product and 'How To' summaries on my 'How To - Tips and Techniques' Pinterest board in case you've missed any. 

Enjoy your evening; I'll be back tomorrow with another project using these papers, this time for our new challenge over at The Paper Players. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

PEACEFUL PLACE 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) SPECIALTY DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£14.00)	WELL DEFINED CLING STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£10.00)	BASIC GRAY A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	BLENDING BRUSHES (£11.25)	POLISHED PINK CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)	SILVER FOIL 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) SPECIALTY PACK (£9.25)
POLISHED PINK 3/8" (1 CM) OPEN WEAVE RIBBON (£6.50)	SNOWFLAKE WISHES PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£24.00)

It's Thursday and time for a new challenge over at TicTacToe! It's the turn of Team X to host this week and the lovely Betty is our featured designer this week. This is the fun board that we are playing along with: 

Betty made a fabulous board this week and I really was spoiled for choice! Having finally taken receipt of my Wintry 3D embossing folder this week after a very protracted wait, I knew I would have to use it on today's card. I went down the middle column of the grid with snowflakes/free/winter and used both the sketch layout over at Try Stamping on Tuesday and the sparkly snowflake in this week's Inspired By photo for a wintry card that is choc full of snowflakes and sparkle in equal measure - take a look:

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

A Wintry Ombre - I embossed two panels of basic white cardstock and another of ombre glimmer paper with the snowflake Wintry 3D embossing folder for some textured panels - I love how the snowflakes appear to swirl with the design. On the ombre glimmer paper, which is in hues of Night of Navy, I lightly sanded the embossed areas to highlight the texture and detail - you can see it more closely on the photo below:

The ombre glimmer paper is gorgeous and embosses beautifully - I just love the effect!

Tag-tastic - I used one of my Tailored Tag Dies to cut my tag as per the sketch, and stamped it with snowflakes and swirls, adding a sentiment heat-embossed onto a stitched label. I added an over-the-top bow using some sparkly ribbons and accented my tag with some glimmer paper snowflakes in white and navy. I cut these with my Stitched Snowflakes Dies; if you've had your eye on these and not yet ordered, I'm afraid you will be disappointed as they were one of the first things to fly off yesterday's 'Last Chance Products' retiring items list. If you missed that post, check it out here.

Merry Snowflakes Inside - I used the 'Snowflake Wishes' stamp for the details and sentiment on the front of my card, but added decoration and a further sentiment from the 'Merry Snowflakes' set to decorate the inside:

I know I made today's card as a seasonal thank you, but I think it's still ok to have a Christmassy sentiment on the inside too, don't you think? 

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 Product and 'How To' summaries on my 'How To - Tips and Techniques' Pinterest board in case you've missed any. 

A tictactoe board offers so many creative possibilities - how does this week's board inspire you? Why not have a go? We would love to see you in the gallery and who knows - you might be selected for Designer's Choice and be eligible to be a guest designer on a future challenge. 

Enjoy your day; I'll hopefully be back tomorrow with another project, but no promises - the Christmas rush is getting the better of me! Until next time, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

SNOWFLAKE WISHES PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£24.00)	MERRY SNOWFLAKES CLING STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£10.00)	WINTRY 3D EMBOSSING FOLDERS (£9.25)	TAILOR MADE TAGS DIES (£20.00)	STITCHED SO SWEETLY DIES (£30.00)
BLUE ADHESIVE-BACKED GEMS (£7.50)	OMBRE 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) SPECIALTY PAPER (£9.25)	WHITE 3/8'' (1 CM) GLITTERED ORGANDY RIBBON (£8.00)	SIMPLY ELEGANT TRIM (£7.00)	NIGHT OF NAVY A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)
BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£7.75)

Today it's Sunday and time for this week's new challenge over at The Paper Players! It's my turn to host this week and I have a timely theme challenge for you to work with:

19 days to go and yes - it's beginning to feel a lot like Christmas, so that is my theme this week! You can share your gifts, cards, packaging - we would love to see your festive makes! I love to make co-ordinating cards and gift packaging at this time of year so I have one such set to share with you today. My post is photo-heavy as I'm going to share both a Christmas card and a rather fancy matching gift box using products from the Snowflake Splendor Suite. I even have a video tutorial for you!

First up - here's my Christmas card, with the hexagonal aperture cut using the So Many Snowflake dies:

I added some diecut snowflakes painted with Frosted White shimmer paint and finished with those pretty Balmy Blue adhesive-backed gems and a pretty Pool Party sheer ribbon bow, with a simple sentiment and snowflake decoration on the inside of my card:

 Check out the effect of those faceted gems - so sparkly!

This card was a variation on one I made in my monthly card class featuring the Snowflake Wishes bundle a few months ago. I liked the card so much, I decided to make a matching box, using the same hexagonal aperture and the Stitched Nested Label Dies from the annual catalogue. I made a simple birthday gift box using these dies previously (you can see that box here if you missed it) and have been wanting to make a video tutorial to show how it was done, so this seemed like the perfect opportunity. Here is my finished box closed:

And this is what it looks like open - the lid and base extend beyond the sides of the box and the top slides off to reveal the inside:

I wanted to step up my box so instead of simply creating an open aperture on the lid, I added some acetate and created a shaker, filled with snowflake sequins and glitter - check out  this out - it's not only the sentiment that's full of sparkle:

I added some Snowflake Splendor designer paper to the sides of my box lid and wrapped and tied it with more of the Pool Party sheer ribbon, to tie it in with the detail on my card - you can see that better below:

Rather than detail exactly how I made this project in words, I thought I would make a video tutorial should you wish to have a go at making one yourself - so here it is:

I am just in love with this set; the box isn't huge, but will hold small gifts such as chocolates, jewellery, a scented candle - lots of options! Here's a final photo of my projects together:

I would love to know what you thought of my video tutorial too; was it useful? Would you like to see more of this type of content. Do let me know - I would love to hear your thoughts!

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 Product and '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:

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; I started writing Christmas cards whilst at hockey yesterday and am hoping to crack on with those this afternoon to get them in the post tomorrow, which will be a huge achievement! I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

SNOWFLAKE WISHES BUNDLE (ENGLISH) (£51.25)	STITCHED NESTED LABELS DIES (£33.00)	SNOWFLAKE SPLENDOR DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£10.75)	BLUE ADHESIVE-BACKED GEMS (£7.50)	SNOWFLAKE SEQUINS (£5.50)
POOL PARTY CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)	POOL PARTY A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	BALMY BLUE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)	WHISPER WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£9.00)	FROST WHITE SHIMMER PAINT (£7.50)
POOL PARTY 3/8" (1 CM) SHEER RIBBON (£5.50)	FOAM ADHESIVE STRIPS (£7.25)	WINDOW SHEETS (£4.75)

It's Thursday and time for a new challenge over at TicTacToe! It's the turn of Team X to host this week and the lovely Betty is our featured designer this week. This is the fun board that we are playing along with: 

I decided to use the lovely Julee's Mojo Monday sketch along with the Paper Craft Crew inspiration photo (no red presents on this one but I did love that snowy blue sky) - take a look:

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

Snowflake Splendor - The paper I used for the background on today's card is another of the Snowflake Splendor patterns. It has a really atmospheric effect that reminds me of the sky when it snows and blends from navy through to seaspray blue.

So Many Snowflakes - I decorated my card with lots of snowflakes: some diecut from (retired) white glimmer paper, a sprinkling of snowflake sequins and then a few holographic self-adhesive snowflakes for good measure. They are all so sparkly:

I added some extra sparkle with a twist of Snowflake Splendor ribbon behind the sentiment circle too.

Snowflake Wishes Thank You - I used the 'Snowflake Wishes' stamp set for my greeting, and decided to use the thank you as opposed to a Christmas one for a (brief!) change - after all, we still need thank you cards at this time of year so it's nice to have one that is seasonally themed. And I'm always up for a good pun, so this one's perfect! 

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 Product and 'How To' summaries on my 'How To - Tips and Techniques' Pinterest board in case you've missed any. 

A tictactoe board offers so many creative possibilities - how does this week's board inspire you? Why not have a go? We would love to see you in the gallery and who knows - you might be selected for Designer's Choice and be eligible to be a guest designer on a future challenge. 

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

SNOWFLAKE WISHES BUNDLE (ENGLISH) (£51.25)	SNOWFLAKE SPLENDOR DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£10.75)	SNOWFLAKE SPLENDOR 1/4" (6.4 MM) RIBBON (£6.50)	SNOWFLAKE SEQUINS (£5.50)	ADHESIVE-BACKED SNOWFLAKES (£5.50)
STITCHED SHAPES DIES (£25.20)	NIGHT OF NAVY A4 CARDSTOCK (£7.43)	WHISPER WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£7.75)	NIGHT OF NAVY CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£6.30)	BALMY BLUE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£6.30)

Today it's Sunday and time for this week's new challenge over at The Paper Players! It's the turn of the amazing LeAnne to host this week and she has my favourite, a sketch challenge for you to work with:

My card is all about the winter blues today - perfect for the Double D challenge (thanks for the heads up on this one LeAnne!) I really liked LeAnne's sketch layout this week and decided to use those panels to highlight one of the photographic images in the Feels Like Frost designer series paper pack - take a look:

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

I chose a lovely image of frosty seed heads against a blue background and cut out the panels using my Rectangle Stitched Dies before piecing back together to create the finished layout:

I brushed the frosty elements with my clear Wink of Stella brush which is difficult to see in the photo but give it a lovely subtle sparkle in real life. I added a sentiment from 'Snowflake Wishes' and a mat border of silver glimmer paper and finished off the inside with a sentiment from the same set:

The most tricky part of today's card was cutting the stitched rectangles and aligning them to the image. Otherwise, a pretty straightforward card!

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

 I 

You can see all of my Product and '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:

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; today is officially 'Stir up Sunday', an old tradition when home cooks spend the last Sunday before advent 'stirring up' their Christmas pudding and in modern times their Christmas cake and homemade mincemeat too.  The day gets its name from the beginning of the collect for the day in the Book of Common Prayer, which begins with the words, "Stir up, we beseech thee, O Lord, the wills of thy faithful people". We had a day of preparation yesterday and made a batch of mincemeat and some mince pies; today we are making Christmas puddings and cake - yum! I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

FEELS LIKE FROST 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 CM) SPECIALTY DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£14.00)

SNOWFLAKE WISHES PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£24.00)

RECTANGLE STITCHED DIES (£33.00)

SEASIDE SPRAY A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)

NIGHT OF NAVY CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)

WINK OF STELLA CLEAR GLITTER BRUSH (£7.50)

A busy couple of days but it's Thursday and time for a new challenge over at TicTacToe! It's the turn of Team X to host this week and the lovely Ashwini is our featured designer this week. This is the fun board that we are playing along with: 

I decided to go down the centre column with blue, holiday and sparkle/shine and am sharing a clean and layered snowflake card with you today - take a look:

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

True Blue - The main blue that I chose to feature on my card today is Pacific Point - one of the first three ink pads I ever purchased when I started stamping (along with Real Red and Old Olive, in case you're interested!) and whilst, like my other initial purchases, this is a colour that is still going strong, it's also one I don't use as frequently in my general crafting. So you can imagine how pleased I was when I saw it feature as one of the colours in the Snowflake Splendor patterned paper - I knew it would be the perfect opportunity to give it some love!

Snowflake Splendor - There are so many beautiful patterns in the Snowflake Splendor papers it's difficult to choose just two, but choose I did! I went with a couple of complimentary patterns, both of which feature Pacific Point, to bring out the bold blue colour. I used white mats on my project, which is something I don't often do but is a great way to showcase a stronger colour such as Pacific Point. 

Glimmer and Sparkle - Pacific Point is not the only blue that I showcase on today's card though; the Balmy Blue glimmer paper is so full of sparkle I couldn't resist adding some to my festive snowflake showcase and I think it compliments the other elements beautifully. I also added a sprinkling of sequins for a little more shimmer; along with my sparkle-filled sentiment I think this card is perfect for the current Time Out challenge too, where the challenge word is 'festivals' with the option of added shimmer/glitter - yes please!

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 Product and 'How To' summaries on my 'How To - Tips and Techniques' Pinterest board in case you've missed any. 

A tictactoe board offers so many creative possibilities - how does this week's board inspire you? Why not have a go? We would love to see you in the gallery and who knows - you might be selected for Designer's Choice and be eligible to be a guest designer on a future challenge. 

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

SNOWFLAKE SPLENDOR DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£10.75)	BALMY BLUE GLIMMER PAPER (£4.75)	SNOWFLAKE WISHES PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£24.00)	STITCHED SO SWEETLY DIES (£30.00)	PACIFIC POINT A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)
PACIFIC POINT CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)	WHISPER WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£9.00)	SNOWFLAKE SEQUINS (£5.50)