Today I'm sharing a couple of cards that I made using the sketch layout over at TGIF Challenges this week:

I thought this was the perfect layout to showcase a couple of panels I made in one of my online Zoom demonstrations yesterday morning - take a look:

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

Lovely You - Further to my class featuring the 'Lovely You' stamp set last week, I have been continuing my online demonstrations showcasing additional ideas and techniques that can be used with this set. The little leaves and flowers in this stamp set are useful for so many things and particularly good for creating patterned backgrounds.

Baby Wipe Technique - I created a variegated ink pad using a trio of reinkers and a stack of baby wipes that I then used t create my multi-coloured background. If you've never tried this technique, I recommend you give it a go - it is really fun and you can achieve a unique result each time. Here are the colours I used to create my ink pad:

Delightful Tag Topper Punch - When is a tag not a tag? Well, when it's used to create an interesting design feature on a card! I love the way the sketch has this split panel - perfect for 2 tags punched with the Delightful Tag Topper punch and after heat embossing with my sentiment, I tied them both together with some soft white seam binding ribbon.

I liked the sketch so much I created two panels then mounted each separately, one onto an Old Olive base and one on to Mint Macaron. The ladies on my call were unanimous in their preference for the Old Olive base, but I thought I'd share the alternative with you too:

Lastly, here's both cards together:

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 am loving my online sessions with my ladies; we are having an Autumn-Winter pre-order unboxing on Thursday this week - if you would like to join us just let me know!

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

LOVELY YOU CLING STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£22.00)	DELIGHTFUL TAG TOPPER PUNCH (£21.00)	BLACKBERRY BLISS CLASSIC STAMPIN' INK REFILL (£3.50)	OLD OLIVE CLASSIC STAMPIN' INK REFILL (£3.50)	MINT MACARON CLASSIC STAMPIN' INK REFILL (£3.50)	BLACKBERRY BLISS A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)
OLD OLIVE A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	MINT MACARON A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	WHISPER WHITE 1/4" (6.4 MM) CRINKLED SEAM BINDING RIBBON (£7.00)	VERSAMARK PAD (£8.75)	WHITE STAMPIN’ EMBOSS POWDER (£5.50)	WHISPER WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£9.00)

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 Amy is our featured designer this week. This is the fun board that we are playing along with: 

I used this week's CAS(E) This Sketch layout and went down the central column of patterned paper/sea creatures/purple for my card today - take a look:

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

Whale Of A Time - I used a piece of the 'Whale of A Time' designer paper as the basis for today's card - this sheet covered in swimming whales makes the perfect centrepiece, or rather backdrop for that striking diagonal and punny sentiment.

Thanks A Ton - My sentiment comes from the 'Whale Done' stamp set and actually appears differently on the stamp itself (you can see that on the stamp set product image below). I wanted my sentiment to run in a single line so carefully masked and stamped it in two separate movements to achieve the desired effect. I added a heart to accent it, which also comes from the same set.

Inside Action - The front of my card came together pretty quickly and was mostly about getting the angles and corners even on each of the layers, which I always find quite tricky where diagonals are involved. I did have time to add a little extra stamping to the inside of my card in the same colours to echo the design on the front and I punched out my whale using the co-ordinating punch to save masking my seaweed:

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 did all of my jobs yesterday so I am getting crafty today with a Zoom session this morning all about Stampin' Write markers and hopefully time for more crafty makes too. I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:  

WHALE DONE PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£16.00)	WHALE OF A TIME DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£10.75)	POOL PARTY A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	WHISPER WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£9.00)	BLACKBERRY BLISS A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)
PRETTY PEACOCK A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	BLACKBERRY BLISS CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)	PRETTY PEACOCK CLASSIC STAMPIN’ PAD (£7.00)

I've had a busy day today with an online class this morning so I'm late blogging and an just squeezing in a card for this week's challenge over at CAS Colours and Sketches: 

I usually shy away from 'the double' but I still had my 'Lovely You' stamp set on my desk from this morning's class and saw an opportunity to combine something that featured in this morning's class - making our own patterned paper - with something we are looking at in our demonstration session on Thursday later this week - using our Stampin' Write markers to colour stamps - to create a card. Here's what I came up with:

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

I changed the colours to the closest current ones and used one of the Ornate Layers Dies to frame my two-colour marker inked image, and paired my randomly stamped panel with a plain green one to ground it. I added a soft white ribbon bow; in hindsight, this along with the frame makes this card a little less 'CAS' than I would usually consider a card to be, but I do like the end result.

If you would like to join me for a free 30 minute demonstration session later this week that demonstrates the techniques I used on today's card, then do leave me a comment below or send me an email and I will send you the joining details - everyone is welcome.

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

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

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Good morning everyone! I am playing catch up slightly due to a busy week. I hope you are enjoying your weekends and if you're in the UK are enjoying the return of the sunshine, even if it's windy enough to lose your hat! 

I just wanted to let you know that BONUS DAYS ARE BACK! Do you remember this promotion from last year? It was so successful, Stampin' Up! have decided to repeat it this year. 

For every £45.00 you spend between 1 July and 3 August (before delivery), you’ll get a £4.50 Bonus Days coupon that you can use between 4 and 31 August. Our new annual catalogue has been out for a month now, so I'm sure you will still have long wish lists; this is a great opportunity to shop from it and make savings when you shop again in August with your coupons! 

There are some details in terms of small print that you need to take note of, as follows: 

• Promotion period: 1 July –3 August 2020
• Redemption period: 4–31 August 2020
• An email address is required to participate in this promotion; Bonus Days coupon codes can only be delivered via email.
• If a participant earns multiple codes from a single order, they will receive one e-mail with multiple codes. If they earn multiple codes from multiple orders, they will receive separate e-mails for each code earned.
• It is strongly recommended that you both save emails containing their Bonus Days coupon codes AND write down the coupon codes in a safe place. Codes cannot be resent if the email is lost, and lost codes cannot be recovered.
• Bonus Days coupon codes can be redeemed for any product, excluding Starter Kits.
• There is no limit to the number of coupons you can receive per order or throughout the duration of the promotion.
• There is no limit on the number of coupons you can use on an order during redemption.

With redemption of any coupons earned coinciding with the launch of the new Autumn Winter catalogue too, you will have the perfect excuse to put them to good use! In the meantime, happy shopping!

Today I'm sharing a card that is totally fitting for the current Color My Heart Color Dare colour combo - this challenge is celebrating it's 400th challenge, although this is a new-to-me challenge and this is only the second time I've played along (the first time was #399!)

My card is for a special celebration too - a certain member of the James household recently celebrated her 15th birthday and as anyone who has been reading my blog for a long time knows, she usually has some exacting requirements as far as her birthday card is concerned! Here is my finished card:

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

Rainbow Glimmer and Artistry Blooms - Like me, the minute Miss Rebecca saw the rainbow glimmer paper she fell in love with it - and wanted me to use the green, blue and purple hues for her card. I punched a whole bunch of balloons from this glittery paper, added an epoxy dot to highlight each one and tied each one with some silver thread tied with some retired two-tone ribbon to create my bunch. They really are so pretty and sparkly in real life! I paired them with a co-ordinating ombre paper from the Artistry Blooms pack for the perfect backdrop.Check out all that sparkle and dimension:

Everything Amazing - I'll be honest, I wasn't sure what to combine my glimmer paper with; Master James came to the rescue with his '3 word' game. He suggested we choose 3 words that describe Rebecca that we should then try to incorporate into her card. One of his words was 'amazing' - which led me to the now retired 'Everything Amazing' stamp set. This set dates back to June 2019 and is now but is one I never got to use whilst it was current, so it was good to be able to give it an airing. It's also perfect for Retro Rubber this week since anything goes! I heat embossed the main sentiment in silver then infilled the words in Night of Navy.

And For The Inside - I created a customised inside with the super-useful Family Party set and perfect for special, personalised greetings:

I'm glad to report Rebecca loved her card so another successful birthday card challenge achieved!

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

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

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

RAINBOW GLIMMER PAPER (£5.50)	ARTISTRY BLOOMS DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£10.75)	BALLOON BOUQUET PUNCH (£17.00)	VERSAMARK PAD (£8.75)	SILVER STAMPIN’ EMBOSS POWDER (£5.50)
WHISPER WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£9.00)	RICH RAZZLEBERRY CARDSTOCK A4 (£8.25)	NIGHT OF NAVY CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)

Today I'm sharing my design team card for our new challenge over at As you See It where it's time for a seasonal theme challenge:

I was all set to go with sunsets and palm trees for today's cards, then I saw some of the other Design Team cards and the new challenge over at Time Out and as I perused the stamp sets on my shelf decided to go in an entirely different direction - take a look:

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

Holiday Nostalgia - I'm sure that many of you, myself included, have vacation plans have been put into disarray this year, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't remember all that is good about a vacation. The image on my card today comes from the stamp set 'Beautiful Moments' and is one I haven't used before. It reminds me of childhood summer vacations at the seaside, paddling in rock pools, building sandcastles and shell collecting, always with a bucket and spade in hand and this image could well have been my sister and I some 40+ years ago! I coloured it with my Stampin' Blends in pastel shades for a feeling of softness. 

Texture and Layers - I split the colours on my base and panels to loosely represent sand and sea/sky and added a panel of vellum to blur the join. I also ran the whole of the layered panel through my Subtles embossing folder to add some subtle texture and interest and wrapped the join with a linen thread bow.

A Beachcomber Embellishment - I was intrigued by Time Out's optional twist to add an embellishment; normally I would have left my card alone at this point, but on the windowsill in my office I have a vase filled with shells. These shells were all collected in the Caribbean as an adult and I keep them because they are beautiful and remind me of happy times and warm, sunny days and most of them are quite large, but there are also some that are teeny-tiny. I selected a pretty, tiny pearlescent shell from my jar and adhered it next to my bow - job done! I am also linking today's card over at Global Design Project as it fits with their theme this week of fun in the sun.

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

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

Here's a summary of our challenge rules:

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

We look forward to seeing your creations in the AYSI gallery.

Today is a bittersweet day in the James household: young Master James is spending the last day at the prep school he has attended for the last 4 years, before embarking on pastures new in September. He has had the best time at this school and we are thankful that he has been able to return to school for the last 2 weeks to have some goodbye fun with his friends and fellow leavers before they all embark on pastures new in September, but we are all sad to be going our separate ways too. I think tissues will be needed at pickup today! Enjoy your day and I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

BEAUTIFUL MOMENTS CLING STAMP SET (£21.00)	TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (£5.50)	STITCHED SHAPES DIES (£28.00)	SUBTLE 3D EMBOSSING FOLDER (£9.25)	VELLUM A4 CARDSTOCK (£9.25)
LINEN THREAD (£4.75)	POOL PARTY A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	SO SAFFRON A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	WHISPER WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£9.00)	STAMPIN' BLENDS POOL PARTY COMBO PACK (£8.50)
STAMPIN’ BLENDS SO SAFFRON COMBO PACK (£8.50)	STAMPIN' BLENDS FLIRTY FLAMINGO COMBO PACK (£8.50)	STAMPIN' BLENDS MINT MACARON COMBO PACK (£8.50)	STAMPIN’ BLENDS PURPLE POSY COMBO PACK (£8.50)

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

I must confess I totally struggled with our board this week! I found myself getting 2 out of 3 squares, but struggling to make a complete row. In the end I grabbed this week's CAS Colours & Sketches sketch for my layout and went down the first column with polka dots, sequins and summer and this is what I came up with:

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

A Dotty Dilemma - I got hung up on so many things on this card, including the polka dots! I couldn't find any dotty papers in summery colours but found a scrap of retired polka dot Brights DSP in Daffodil Delight lurking in the scrap box, so went with it!!

A Cocktails Kind of Day - The weather has been glorious here in the UK this week, with yesterday being the hottest day of the year at 31.8 degrees centigrade recorded and the forecasters are predicting that today will be hotter still! For me cocktails are definitely associated with summer - either a vacation treat or something to be enjoyed on a warm summer evening in the garden. I may or may not have indulged in a rhubarb gin cocktail already this week and this inspired the pink drink on my card. The cocktail and diecut sentiment are courtesy of the new 'Nothing's Better Than' bundle that allows options for cocktails, cookies, coffee and chocolate-themed cards too; I love this set and know I will use it lots!

Sunshine and Sprinkles - To further emphasise the sunshine element of my card, I added a stamped and fussy cut sun from the retired set 'Day at The Beach' which I seem to be getting a lot of use out of lately and a scattering of retired iridescent sequins and sprinkles in co-ordinating colours. Check out that sparkle:

I actually really love this card and looking at the end result I can't believe it took me so long to get there!! I am also linking up with the lovely ladies over at SUO Challenges who are also challenging us to celebrate summer this week and I'm definitely doing that!

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 have lots to do today and will be trying to get everything done without melting into a heap. I might have to reward myself this evening with a cocktail! I hope you are enjoying the lovely weather and I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

NOTHING'S BETTER THAN BUNDLE (ENGLISH) (£43.00)	STITCHED SHAPES DIES (£28.00)	WHISPER WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£7.75)	FLIRTY FLAMINGO A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	FLIRTY FLAMINGO CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)
DAFFODIL DELIGHT CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)	GRANNY APPLE GREEN CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)	TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (£5.50)

A quick post from me this evening - it's too hot to be at the PC! I'm sharing a card for this week's CAS(E) This Sketch challenge where they have this great layout:

I decided instead of a floral that I would decorate my label with a goat. Yes, you did read that correctly - take a look:

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

I am in the process of finishing up my teacher thank you cards, and whilst a little unconventional, I thought this goat and sentiment from the new 'Way To Goat' stamp set would be perfect for a teacher with a sense of humour! I coloured him with my Grey Granite Stampin' Blends and used a label from the Wild Rose Dies. I kept my cardbase simple with a textured panel and used Shaded Spruce as a nod to the school colour. Simple and guaranteed to raise a smile from the recipient! 

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

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

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

WAY TO GOAT CLING STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£18.00)	TASTEFUL TEXTILE 3D EMBOSSING FOLDER (£8.25)	WHISPER WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£9.00)	SHADED SPRUCE A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	WILD ROSE DIES (£32.00)
TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (£5.50)	STAMPIN’ BLENDS GRAY GRANITE COMBO PACK (£8.50)	STAMPIN’ BLENDS SO SAFFRON COMBO PACK (£8.50)

Happy Monday everyone! Today is a special day - not one, but two, yes both of the James Juniors are back to school! There was much excitement in the James household this morning and whilst it's only for a couple of weeks, and for one it's only for a couple of days each week, the excitement at seeing friends and teachers face to face again was palpable! The house is now eerily silent, but it does mean that I am racing through my jobs today and am getting my blog post in early too! Today I'm sharing a card that I made inspired by the lovely Amy's sketch over at Freshly Made Sketches:

A super versatile sketch I'm sure you'll agree and I decided to get snipping for my floral creation today - take a look:

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

Flowers For Every Season - Whilst flowers are by no means mandatory for this sketch, I initially reached for my Flowers For Every Season Memories and More cards as I wanted to incorporate the adhesive sentiments into my card. I couldn't find any flowers that worked for me though, so I reached for my co-ordinating papers and decided to get fussy cutting! I wanted to create some layering with my flowers, with some behind and some in front of my label, so separated the flowers to make this work. 

A Sweet Label - My sentiment label is from the Stitched So Sweetly Die set - such a great set for labels with a good variety of shapes and sizes. 

Textile Texture - I added some texture to the top layer of my Misty Moonlight cardstock using the new Textile Texture embossing folder which is lovely for a little extra detail.

This card was simple to put together once the fussy cutting was completed. I used another leftover edge piece of DSP to decorate the inside of my card too:

Waste not, want not and all that!

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

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

Enjoy your day. I'm racing through my jobs before early school pick up. I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

FLOWERS FOR EVERY SEASON DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£10.75)	FLOWERS FOR EVERY SEASON MEMORIES & MORE CARD (£10.25)	TASTEFUL TEXTILE 3D EMBOSSING FOLDER (£8.25)	STITCHED SO SWEETLY DIES (£30.00)	MISTY MOONLIGHT A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)
MAGENTA MADNESS A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	WHISPER WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£9.00)	MAGENTA MADNESS CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)

I have another quick card to share today that I made last weekend for the challenge over at Less Is More that is actually closing this evening - I'm not sure where this week has gone! I also used the sketch over at Hand Stamped Sentiments (I flipped it vertically):

I have a complete love affair with the new rainbow glimmer paper from Stampin' Up! and couldn't resist using a couple of the Ornate Borders to add detail to my top white panel and cutting away the right border edge to reveal a panel of rainbow glimmer paper - take a look:

Isn't it gorgeous?! I just love the sparkle - check it out:

I added my words courtesy of the Ornate Thanks set to complete my card - here's the inside:

Five simple products are all that's needed to create this gorgeous rainbow-inspired card.

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

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

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

ORNATE THANKS BUNDLE (ENGLISH) (£44.00)

RAINBOW GLIMMER PAPER (£5.50)

COASTAL CABANA A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)

WHISPER WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£9.00)

BERMUDA BAY CLASSIC STAMPIN' INK REFILL (£3.50)

Edited to Add: This card was Artist's Pick for the sketch challenge over at Hand Stamped Sentiments: