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

This is such a great sketch with so many creative options! Go simple, go layered and use any shape you like as a central focal point. I stuck with the circle, but decided to go big on the layering and create with some pretty florals that I had yet to break out of the packaging - time to put paid to that so take a look at what I came up with:

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

Floral Charm - Today's card is all about the Floral Charm Suite, one of the Online Exclusive Suites available in the online store. The beautiful Floral Charm designer series paper is full of bright colours and fabulous watercolour-style floral patterns and I chose the pink and brown patterned piece as the inspiration and basis for the colour scheme for my card. I don't usually feature a whole sheet with such a bold pattern as a background, but I decided today was a 'more is more' card and went with it!

Charming Day - I used a diecut circle for the central shape, stamped with a simple sentiment from the 'Charming Day' bundle from the suite, then added a combination of diecut leaves and a stamped and diecut floral accent that I coloured with my Stampin' Blends. I stamped my image in Early Espresso onto Basic Beige cardstock before colouring; this did cause the colours to bleed more than they would have if I'd stamped onto Basic White, however I wanted my image to be more in keeping with the DSP and to have a more vintage feel, so I didn't mind so much. You can see what I mean when you look at the close up below:

I even added a rather showy Crumb Cake ribbon bow, which I'm sure I'll regret when it comes to posting this card but I felt like it didn't look as out of place as it usually would on my card, so I'm sure I'll work something out!

Finishing Touches - I stamped a single flower on the flap of the envelope and the same floral cluster inside to complete my card; I don't always make time for these details, but I think these finishing touches ae what sometimes set a hand finished card apart, don't you?

I made this card for someone I haven't seen in a while who I know will appreciate the extra detail, so I can't wait to pop it in the post and hopefully brighten her day!

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:

Enjoy your day; it has turned decidedly cold and grey here in the UK these last few days, so today I am going to make a fruit crumble - a sure sign that autumn has made itself known! The only question is whether to fill it with rhubarb or apples, both of which have been harvested this week. I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

FLORAL CHARM 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£11.75)	CHARMING DAY BUNDLE (ENGLISH) (£49.50)	SPOTLIGHT ON NATURE DIES (£33.00)	BASIC BEIGE A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)	BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)	EARLY ESPRESSO A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)
EARLY ESPRESSO CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)	BERRY BURST STAMPIN’ BLENDS COMBO PACK (£10.25)	PETUNIA POP STAMPIN’ BLENDS COMBO PACK (£10.25)	CRUMB CAKE STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (£10.25)	STAMPIN’ BLENDS DEEP COMBO PACK (£10.25)

Today it's Sunday and time for this week's new challenge over at The Paper Players! It's the turn of my crafty friend Jan to host this week and she has an interesting clean and simple challenge for us to work with:

Watercolouring - hmm, not something I do often for sure. I deliberated over how to feature this technique on my card this week and ultimately took my inspiration from Michele's layout over at Freshly Made Sketches and those orange and yellow leaves against the grey of the Just Us Girls mood board this week - take a look:

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

Something Old - That cascade of circles on the FMS sketch this week reminded me of the now retired Leaf Fall 3D embossing folder so I decided that I cascade of embossed leaves would be the starting point for today's card. I embossed my folder onto a piece of watercoloured cardstock ready for the next stage. 

Watercoloured Leaves - I used my aquapainter to pick up a variety of oranges, along with a little yellow and brown (I squeezed a little ink into the ink pad lid) and used my aquapainter to watercolour the embossed leaves. Once my leaves dried, I added a light wash of Grey Granite ink around them.

Something New - I added an autumn sentiment diecut with my new Words For The Season Dies, popped up on foam and cut from Grey Granite cardstock to pick up the greys of the JUGS inspiration picture. I also added a few punched leaves for a little extra texture:

I'm not sure my watercolouring is going to win any awards on close inspection, but I do love the effect of the coloured cascading leaves and that diecut sentiment is going to get lots of use for sure in the coming months.

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:

Enjoy your day; I am paddleboarding today and aiming to make the most of the weather before it gets too cold. We are going to paddle to a restuarant boat on the river for lunch, so that should be fun! I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

WORDS FOR THE SEASON DIES (ENGLISH) (£30.00)	WATER PAINTERS (£13.00)	GRAY GRANITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)	GRAY GRANITE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)	PUMPKIN PIE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)	TIMID TIGER CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)
DARLING DUCKLING CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)	PEACH PIE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)	PECAN PIE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)	FLUID 100 WATERCOLOR PAPER (£8.50)	FOAM ADHESIVE SHEETS (£7.75)

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

Ann's trio of chosen colours is so fresh and pretty; they pulled me right back to spring/summer and some pastel florals, using this week's TGIF Challenges sketch for my layout - take a look:

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

I diecut a trio of flowers using the Delightful Wishes Dies and used one of my favourite tricks to create a variation of shades by colouring the cardstock with my Stampin' Blends markers. You could of course use two-tone cardstock for a quicker result, but by using markers you can get 3 different shades. I layered my flowers onto a trio of squares cut with my Stylish Shapes Dies: two squares were cut from Thoughtful Journey DSP (which I also used for the matting layer) and the central one which I stamped onto Lost Lagoon cardstock with one of the Elements of Text stamps for a tone-on-tone effect. There is a ton of detail in this small section of the card:

A simple sentiment from the same set and a tiny bee trinket complete my card.

I actually have a second card to share today too; these colours reminded me of some pretty floral paper I had in my retired stash that I thought I could use up in a quick card using the Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge layout this week:

Patchwork strip layouts like this are so great for using up scraps. The floral paper features Lost Lagoon and the retired colours Pistachio Pudding and So Saffron, so I grabbed some co-ordinating papers and made this fun 'use it up' card:

 I just added lots of 2cm strips to a panel of cardstock, then trimmed to fit my cardbase, adding a banner greeting from 'Impressions Abloom' and embellished with a couple of enamel dots and a linen bow:

Pretty, right? Super quick and I used up more of my retired papers, so win-win!

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:

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

DELIGHTFUL WISHES PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£19.00)	DELIGHTFUL WISHES DIES (ENGLISH) (£33.00)	STYLISH SHAPES DIES (£28.00)	THOUGHTFUL JOURNEY 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£11.75)	TINY BEE TRINKETS (£8.50)	LEMON LOLLY A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)
LEMON LOLLY STAMPIN’ BLENDS COMBO PACK (£10.25)	SOFT SEA FOAM A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)	SOFT SEA FOAM STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (£10.25)	LOST LAGOON A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)	LOST LAGOON CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£16.00)

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

Food and drink - I sense that the gallery is going to have us drooling this week! I don't have much in the way of food-related supplies currently - so I headed to one of my favourites, the Celebratory Sips designer series paper with my paper snips for some fussy cutting! This is what I came up with:

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

Today's card was all about that designer paper - and those refreshing looking drinks! I fussy cut a whole bunch of full size glasses and layered them onto my card. I had to go slimline, to fit them all in! Some simple layering with one of the glass patterns in the pack providing some border detail and a diecut sentiment courtesy of my retired Cheers Die:

A scattering of sparkly gems completed the front of my card. I couldn't resist adding a few extra offcuts to the inside for a little extra decoration too: 

That's all there is to it!

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.  

We have two reasons to celebrate today: the lovely Christy Stanford has agreed to join our design team at the Paper Players on a permanent basis. She has successfully guested with us a few years ago and we are delighted that she is now back for good! Do check out her blog, along with the other DT cards - we all appreciate some comment love! The second reason to celebrate today? Well, it's my birthday (cue "happy birthday to me, happy birthday to me ...") I know - any excuse for cake, right?!

Before you reach for your ink and papers, check out what our amazing team has created to inspire you this week:

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

CELEBRATORY SIPS 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£11.75)

BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£16.00)

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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 as it's the fifth Sunday of the month I have a tic-tac-toe challenge for us to work with:

I made a board filled with the things I love to craft with, so there are plenty of creative combinations to choose from! I chose the middle column of flowers/free/word die and decided to make a colourful rainbow slimline card - take a look:

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

Floral Impressions - Whilst I've used both the stamps and dies from the Online Exclusives Impressions Abloom on previous projects, I had not yet been brave enough to cut into my Floral Impressions paper. As a DSP lover I had considered it several times, but it was just too pretty! In the end, I decided too pretty not to use so chose my favourite sheet, showcasing a rainbow of flowers, and got my paper trimmer ready! I may or may not have already purchased a second pack of this paper this month, as it's one of the ones that has 15% off during this month's in-color sale. Today is the last day when you are able to take advantage of the in-color sale promotion, so if you need a second pack of this paper too, or any of the other in-color products included in the promotion, here's your reminder to click on the link below and place your order!

CASE The Catalogue - The eagle-eyed amongst you might feel like there's something familiar about today's card - and you may well be right. Today's card is a CASE of one on page 41 of the current Stampin' Up! Annual Catalogue. To CASE - Copy And Share Everything - is a great way to take a project and use it to inspire something completely different, but where you can still see the source of the inspiration. An unwritten rule is that you should change at least 3 things for your card to be considered original and distinct from the project you are CASEing. So in my CASE, I retained the slimline layout, but I changed out my strips for a rainbow of flowers in a different paper pattern. I changed the stamped banner sentiment for one based around the Sweet Blooms 'Bloom' layered diecut (one of my favourites and the perfect encouraging sentiment to play over at Time Out this week) and whilst I retained the cluster of accent flowers, I incorporated more texture and detail (more on that below). If you compare the projects side by side, it's easy to see how the first card inspired the second one, even though my card today is my original work. 

Try Something New - In CASEing the card in the catalogue, it did cause me to try something new on today's card. The flower accent on the sample consisted of a mix of diecut florals and a flower fussy cut from the Florals In Bloom designer paper. Whilst I ordinarily wouldn't mix in this way, I decided to give it a go and in the end made an accent from a variety of diecuts and florals cut from another of the papers in the Floral Impressions pack, but also added in some large golden yellow enamel dots and a fuzzy flower middle from my stash that I thought worked well, having first coloured the edges of it with my Early Espresso marker pen to tone in with the diecut florals. It's difficult to pick up the detail in the main photograph, especially as the background strips are so busy - the close up below shows a little more of the detail:

This adds more texture and dimension and whilst this is something of a departure for me, I really like the effect - and I wouldn't have tried it if the catalogue sample hadn't inspired me to give it a go. What do you think? Do you ever CASE projects in this way? Leave me a comment below - I'd love to know where you find your inspiration.

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:

Enjoy your day; we are hoping for sunshine here to round off this weekend's second cricket game, but I'm note sure we will be in luck. I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

FLORAL IMPRESSIONS 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£9.99)

SWEET BLOOMS BUNDLE (ENGLISH) (£48.50)

IMPRESSIONS ABLOOM DIES (£32.00)

BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£16.00)

EARLY ESPRESSO A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)

EARLY ESPRESSO CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)

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 my favourite, a sketch challenge for us to work with:

The split in the base panel of Jaydee's sketch immediately had me thinking of fancy folds. Now I don't often make fancy folds, they aren't really my thing (especially not complicated ones!) but I had a couple of designs that worked with this sketch and in the end since I made both, I decided to share both with you today as I used the same basic supplies for each - so you get two for the price of one today! Both cards feature the Florals In Bloom Suite and specifically the designer series paper and both the Pretty Florals and Bloom Where You're Planted bundles. Here's a look at both cards:

And here's the second one:

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

Joy Fold - The first card is called a joy fold card. It's in a landscape orientation with the fold on the left, and all you do is cut away half of the card front and cover both this half-panel and the inside back panel in designer paper. You then create another, smaller, card but with both front and back full panels and with the fold on the right hand side. This is then adhered to the inside of the back panel of the larger card, so that the front flaps overlap and when it opens it looks like this:

I used the same pattern on both of my panels and stamped a couple of the flowers that are in the design to decorate the front of my card. I added a little extra colour to the bottom of the blooms with my Stampin' Blends and decorated both with tiny pearls for a little extra detail: 

Perfect for a second entry over at The Flower Challenge too. So pretty, right? This card features one of my favourite patterns in the Florals in Bloom paper pack too.

Accordion Fold - My second card is an accordion fold card. This one required half a sheet of designer paper measuring 6" x 12" and scored at 2", 5" and 8" on the long side and folded (valley, mountain, valley) to create a concertina effect. Panels are then attached to each section and decorated as desired. When closed, you get to see the reverse side of the paper - this is where the main front panel is attached. When opened, there's another panel for a message/greeting:

Then when you fold this over (a little like turning the pages of a book) there's another panel attached to the inside of the back section:

You can decorate however you like - again, I used the designer paper as my inspiration and stamped and diecut a selection of flowers in the same colours to decorate the front of my card, along with a trio of flat pearls:

Whilst this technically has three panels or parts of panels visible, it still works for the sketch because the contrasting papers are what gives the definition for the split. This one is the same proportions as the sketch too, unlike the one above, which I elongated to fit my fold.  I actually prefer the first card (this was the one I actually made second) which is a bit more 'me', but what do you think? Do leave me a comment blow - I'd 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:

Enjoy your day; I am baking a cheesecake and we are having family lunch, then the hubs and I are off to the river to paddleboard this afternoon - it's officially my new hobby too and I need to practice not falling in! I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

PRETTY FLORALS bundle (£47.50)	SWEET BLOOMS BUNDLE (ENGLISH) (£48.50)	FLORALS IN BLOOM 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£9.99)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£16.00)	SHY SHAMROCK A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)	SHY SHAMROCK CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)
PETUNIA POP CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)	PETUNIA POP STAMPIN’ BLENDS COMBO PACK (£10.25)	SECRET SEA CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.23)	SECRET SEA STAMPIN’ BLENDS COMBO PACK (£8.71)	IRIDESCENT PEARL BASIC JEWELS (£7.00)	2025–2027 IN COLOR™ FLAT PEARLS (£6.80)
PEACH PIE A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)	PEACH PIE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)	DARLING DUCKLING CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.23)	POPPY PARADE A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)	POPPY PARADE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)	REAL RED CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)
GRANNY APPLE GREEN CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)	GARDEN GREEN CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)

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

I knew if we were featuring 'critters' on our clean and simple cards this week I would be reaching for those Turtle-y Cute papers again, so I grabbed them and Verena's layout over at Freshly Made Sketches and set to work - take a look:

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

It has been all about the celebrations here in the James household this week: following the youngest James Junior's birthday at the start of the week, we had A Level Results Day on Thursday (a university place is dependent on success, so these are important exams). I am delighted to share that Ben's hard work paid off and he got the grades he needed to confirm his place at his first choice university, so we are all thrilled.

I thought this cute trumpeting turtle would be perfect for another congratulations card and I dug into my retired stamp collection again for the perfect sentiment to go with it. I was intrigued by Verena's FMS sketch this week and found the perfect sentiment stamp in the 'Here's To Cheers' stamp set. I stamped the sentiment in Garden Green, then stamped it again in Darling Ducking and fussy cut the word 'celebrate' so that it extended beyond the circle, as in the sketch. I added my sentiment circle in front of my turtle with dimensionals, having glued him directly to my cardbase, along with a few stamped music notes and sparkly enamel dots:

And that's it! Lots of white space, minimal layers and embellishments - clean and simple, done! This is a less-than-conventional take on the FMS sketch for me, putting the turtle behind the circle, but I think it works - what do you think? Do leave me a comment below - I'd 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:

Enjoy your day; we are out and about today; Ben is off to watch the cricket at Edgbaston and Jason is heading out to the water to go paddleboarding - I think I'm tagging along as official photographer! I'll be back soon with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

TURTLE-Y CUTE 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£9.99)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£16.00)	STYLISH SHAPES DIES (£28.00)	LOW PROFILE SPARKLE DOTS (£7.65)	GARDEN GREEN CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)	DARLING DUCKLING CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.23)
TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (£7.50)

Today it's Monday and I'm a day late with my card for this week's new challenge over at The Paper Players! I'll come on to the reason for this later, but for now it's the turn of the fabulous Claire to host this week and she has an interesting colour challenge for us to work with:

I thought these colours were quite autumnal so I went with a nature-inspired theme using the sketch over at Try A Sketch on Tuesday for my layout - take a look:

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

Using the round Elements of Text stamp for the background, I added a selection of mushrooms of various designs from the 'Terrific Toadstools' stamp set in each of the challenge colours:

A little extra stamping inside my card 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 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:

So the reason for my delay with this week's card? The youngest of the James Juniors is celebrating his 18th birthday today and I had somethign of a cake emergency that had to be dealt with. It was a close call, but eventually it was resolved and I managed to save the day. Here's a photo of his finished cake - which was delicious, even if I say so myself!

I'll be back later in the week with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

ELEMENTS OF TEXT CLING STAMP SET (£22.50)	TERRIFIC TOADSTOOLS PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£18.00)	BLACKBERRY BLISS CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)	OLD OLIVE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)	CHERRY COBBLER CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)	PUMPKIN PIE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)
CRUMB CAKE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£16.00)

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

I haven't had any craft time this past week as I've been decorating (creativity of a different kind!) but had plenty of time to ponder what I was going to feature on my card today. I was initially thinking of rivers and lakes, but then I remembered the scene backgrounds in the Turtle-y Cute designer series paper pack and that one of them featured a beach scene - and today's card was born. I decided to use Linda's layout over at Freshly Made Sketches for my card (albeit I made it in a horizonal rather than portrait orientation as I couldn't bear to lose too much of the background) as it is perfect for this kind of design - take a look:

I added the background to my card then built my scene using images from other sheets in the DSP pack. I added an appropriate sentiment from the retired 'Friends Are Like Seashells' stamp set along with a red enamel heart to complete the outside of my card:

I cut my solid red borders straight so as not to detract from my scene. I also added a little additional decoration to the inside, continuing the beach theme:

That's all there is to it - lots of fussy cutting, many dimensionals and a cute card for someone special, where the paper really does do the heavy lifting. Today's card reminds me that my recent beach holiday already seems like too long ago; time to start browsing the holiday brochures and planning another vacation, I 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. 

Before you reach for your ink and papers, check out what our amazing team has created to inspire you this week:

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

TURTLE-Y CUTE 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£11.75)

BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£16.00)

STYLISH SHAPES DIES (£28.00)

TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (£7.50)

POPPY PARADE A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)

STAMPIN’ DIMENSIONALS (£4.00)

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

I loved the layering on Jan's sketch today and couldn't resist the opportunity to go big with colour and patterns this week. - take a look:

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

Florals In Bloom - I decided to use one of the bold floral patterns from the Florals In Bloom papers for my cardbase today and that then laid the foundations for everything that followed. I chose one featuring large soft pink and lilac flowers and used it to cover the whole of my cardbase - so pretty! I layered a patterned panel that is one of the reverse papers in this set on top of that; ordinarily I am more likely to use these patterns as a base or backing panel, but with the large florals as the base I needed something with less pattern that was more solid to give something for the other elements to sit that made them more visible as I didn't ant them to be lost against the base pattern.

Pretty Florals - I used a diecut flower from the Pretty Florals dies that echoes the shape of the flowers featured on the card base for my 'any shape' element, picking up the colours of the paper:

Sweet Blooms - For the remaining elements I decided to use a stamp and diecut sentiment from the Sweet Blooms bundle - I just love those word diecuts! A trio of pink sparkly enamel dots complete my card. 

I feel like the bold patterns makes this card slightly busier than my usual style, but I am not unhappy with the the result. It's nice to use a bold pattern once in a while!

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:

Enjoy your day; unusually for a Sunday today is a sport-filled one: one of us is paddleboarding, another is playing cricket and I suspect we will all end the day watching to see if the Lionesses are successful in defending their title in the final of the European Cup this evening. I'll be back soon with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

PRETTY FLORALS bundle (£47.50)	SWEET BLOOMS BUNDLE (ENGLISH) (£48.50)	FLORALS IN BLOOM 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£11.75)	STRAWBERRY SLUSH & PRETTY IN PINK GEMS (£8.00)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£16.00)	GARDEN GREEN A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)
PRETTY IN PINK A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)	PRETTY IN PINK STAMPIN’ BLENDS COMBO PACK (£10.25)	STRAWBERRY SLUSH A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)	PETUNIA POP A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)	PETUNIA POP CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)