I've had a great day today and spent most of it in my craft room making samples for my forthcoming Stampin' Up! New Catalogue Launch Party (you can find full details here). You will be seeing lots of 'sneak peek' cards this week ready to whet your appetite for what's coming in the new catalogue. Today I'm sharing a card I made using this week's sketch layout over at Seize the Sketch and one of my favourite new stamp sets, Sea Street. Here is the sketch layout:

 And here's my fun take on the sketch:

I used a piece of Coastal Cabana for my base, then mounted a piece of Maritime Designer Series Paper onto a Night of Navy mat and aligned this with the edge of my card.  I then stamped the octopus from the Sea Street stamp set in Night of Navy on Whisper White and fussy cut it out and adhered it to my card using Stampin' Dimensionals. I then created a little flag using one of the stamps from the Hip Notes stamp set using some Whisper White and a cocktail stick, colouring the word 'hooray' with my Coastal Cabana marker. I finished with a Night of Navy stitched grosgrain ribbon bow across the DSP section.

This stamp set is a great set for fun birthday cards and lots more besides - check back to see what else I'll be making with it this week.

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

* Sea Street - available 1st July

* Maritime DSP - available 1st July

Hip Notes	Night Of Navy Classic Stampin' Pad	Night Of Navy A4 Card Stock	Whisper White A4 Card Stock	Card Stock A4 Coastal Cabana
Night Of Navy 1/4" Stitched Grosgrain Ribbon

Yay - it's Friday! I'm not sure if I should be as happy about this as I naturally feel as I have a ton of work to do this weekend, but hey - I will at least get a cup of tea in bed to start my day as a weekend treat, so that will set me up for the day! I have a busy day today too: we cycled to school this morning, but now I have a spot of housework to do and then hairdressers, more leaflet deliveries for my new catalogue launch party, lunch, afternoon rounders game (Rebecca, not me!) then cycling home and if I'm lucky a spot of crafting before dinner - my UPS man is due today, so all being well I should have more new goodies to play with too! So it's time to show you my card: today I'm sharing another of the samples I made with the Traveler stamp set to take with me to Telford for the Stampin' Up! UK Regional Training Day that I presented at last month. This one features the ocean liner, so is perfect for linking up with the challenge over at The Card Concept, where the theme this week is all things nautical:

I'm also linking up with the team over at SUO Challenges, where their theme is Summer Time - anything from beaches, to ocean to patriotism - so I think my card will fit the bill. This stamp is my favourite in the set; here's just one of the cards that I've made with it:

For this card I've used a base of Night of Navy and stamped the World Atlas stamp in Island Indigo on a panel of the same colour. I stamped the liner in Black Stazon on a piece of Whisper White with my Circle Framelits and coloured with my aquapainter, then inset this circle behind a circle aperture in the Island Indigo layer. To finish, I cut a circle outline using two nested framelits from brushed silver cardstock, then added some mini silver brads to give the appearance of a porthole framing the liner image. A nice clean and layered card.

The front is sentiment-free as I didn't want to detract from my focal image; this also means I can stamp a sentiment on the inside of the card to suit when I'm ready to send it. This set is great for masculine cards - keep checking back as I've lots more to show you where this came from.

Right, I'm off to start ticking off the jobs - back tomorrow with another project; until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up Supplies Used:

*Traveler stamp set - available 1st July 2014

World Map	Night Of Navy Classic Stampin' Pad	Night Of Navy A4 Card Stock	Island Indigo Classic Stampin' Pad	Island Indigo A4 Card Stock
Smoky Slate Classic Stampin' Pad	Real Red Classic Stampin' Pad	Aqua Painter	Circles Collection Framelits Dies	Magnetic Platform
Big Shot Die-Cut Machine	Whisper White A4 Card Stock	Brushed Silver A4 Card Stock	Silver Mini Brads

Back so soon, I know - here is today's creative post! I'm sharing a card I made using the sketch over at Create with Connie and Mary this week:

I decided to use some of my retiring stamps and papers for my card and started out making a birthday card because the cake reminded me of Rebecca's birthday cake at the weekend, but by the time I had everything laid out on my desk I decided that the card would make a nicer wedding card. Here's my finished card:

I made a 5" square card and matted a piece of Quatrefancy paper onto Midnight Muse and a Pool Party base (I know technically the dots on the paper are Island Indigo, but since the dots are so small the whole thing still works, even though I've not followed the colours exactly for the rest of the card - what a rule-breaker am I??!) I then stamped a three tier cake with butterfly decoration from the 'Make a Cake' stamp set, stamping the base section twice, once in Midnight Muse for the stand and then again in Pool Party. I fussy cut the Pool Party cake out and used it to create the base layer for my cake. I used my oval framelits to cut out my framed oval and finished with a Mr & Mrs banner flag from the 'Banner Greetings' stamp set, a couple of double-stamped and punched butterflies to echo those on top of the cake and a strip of silver glimmer paper for just the right amount of sparkle.

I really like this finished card but despite where my mind started out it looks absolutely nothing like Rebecca's kitkat cake that I made for her birthday this past weekend:

If that's not death by chocolate, then I don't know what is - it did taste delicious though!

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Make A Cake Clear-Mount Stamp Set	Papillon Potpourri Clear-Mount Stamp Set	Banner Greetings	Ovals Collection Framelits Dies	Magnetic Platform
Big Shot Die-Cut Machine	Quatrefancy Specialty Designer Series Paper	Pool Party Classic Stampin' Pad	Pool Party A4 Card Stock	Midnight Muse Classic Stampin' Pad
Midnight Muse A4 Card Stock	Whisper White A4 Card Stock	Silver Glimmer Paper

It's Wednesday and here are this week's Wednesday Weekly Deals! This week's deals are included below - they will be available for one week only, before a new collection of deals is announced.

As always, if you want to take advantage of any of the deals on offer, you can support my business by placing your order online by clicking here or using the link to my store on the right hand side of my blog page where it says 'Shop Online' or with me in person. Don't forget to add the Hostess Code for June (you can find this under the 'Shop Online' section on the right). 

PLEASE NOTE: There have been some instability issues with the online store for some customers over the last few days - some customers are able to process their orders normally, whilst others are not. This was brought to my attention by one of my online customers yesterday; Stampin' Up! are aware of the problem and are working to resolve it. Meanwhile, if you are having difficulty placing an online order at any time, please give me a call on 07773 421446 and I will take your order over the telephone; the problems that are being experienced are not affecting the demonstrator ordering system so I can still place your order and arrange for it to be delivered to you as normal.

Here's a summary of this week's one-week only Wednesday deals - click on each item to go to the online store to purchase:

3-1/2 Inch Circle Originals Die	Etcetera Designer Series Paper	Flower Garden Textured Impressions Embossing Folder Die	In Color Dahlias	Sunshine & Sprinkles Ensemble - Digital Download
Travel Journal Stampin' Around Builder Wheel	Very Vintage

Back shortly with today's creative post; meanwhile, race you to the online store! 

Today's card is for this week's Pals Paper Arts challenge, where Team 2 have chosen a rather patriotic colour palette this week, with one last opportunity to use Midnight Muse before it retires at the end of the month:

I decided these colours would make a perfect masculine card and so have another sneak peek using the Traveler stamp set, coming in the new 2014 annual catalogue. Here is my card:

I stamped three of the stamps in the set - the ocean liner, the globe and the steam train - in Midnight Muse, then cropped these images and mounted them on individual mats in the same colour, followed by a larger Real Red and Midnight Muse panel. This is then overlaid on a crossways panel finished with some Real Red candy dots and lastly a sentiment stamped in Midnight Muse with one of the Itty Bitty Banners stamps and cut out with the co-ordinating framelit. I even gave the inside some star treatment with a steam train - I don't do this often enough, and even when I do I often forget to share with you: 

I really like this set, having used it so much already. Despite its 'vintage' look, it lends itself to a more modern finish too. I'm also linking my card up to Addicted to CAS where the theme this week is 'transport'. Back tomorrow with the Wednesday Deals and another card. Until then, I'm off to prepare for a private class tomorrow, get on with some admin and then hopefully squeeze in a make or two as well - happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

*Traveler Stamp Set - available 1st July 2014.

Itty Bitty Banners Clear-Mount Stamp Set	Bitty Banners Framelits Die	1" Square Punch	Midnight Muse Classic Stampin' Pad	Midnight Muse A4 Card Stock
Real Red Classic Stampin' Pad	Real Red A4 Card Stock	Whisper White A4 Card Stock	Big Shot Die-Cut Machine	Magnetic Platform
Brights Candy Dots

Today's creative post uses the colours for this week's Colour Me...! Challenge (although I am not linking up this week as the challenge has already closed) and I've used this week's sketch over at CAS Colours & Sketches for my layout:

I decided to get out my 'So Very Grateful' stamp set for this card - I can't quite believe this set will be leaving us at the end of the month, I love it and don't feel I've used it anywhere near enough. This is a good time to point out that whilst there's always lots of focus on those items in the main catalogue that are retiring, we sometimes forget about the lovely stamps that are in the Spring-Summer seasonal catalogue that will also no longer be available after 30th June. If you still have items on your wishlist, you've only got a couple of weeks to find out whether they are being carried over into the new annual catalogue or whether they will be gone for good. So, here is my card:

I used a base of Pear Pizzazz then decided to create three clear panels for my card and stamped the main flower image from the set in the challenge colours on white for the outer pieces, then stamped the same image in Versamark on the central panel of Marina Mist and heat embossed in white. I finished the central panel with a piece of 'vintage' Marina Mist taffeta ribbon and lastly added my sentiment to the bottom panel.

This card makes me think of the old saying 'blue and green should never be seen, unless there's a colour in between' - I have to say, I think this card looks really fresh and old saying or not, I'd have to disagree!

Back tomorrow with a sneak peek; until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

So Very Grateful	Embossing Buddy	Versamark Pad	White Stampin' Emboss Powder	Marina Mist Classic Stampin' Pad
Marina Mist A4 Card Stock	Pear Pizzazz Classic Stampin' Pad	Card Stock A4 Pear Pizzazz	Whisper White A4 Card Stock	Heat Tool - Uk Plug

Another Monday and the start of a new week! Lots going on in the coming weeks as far as Stampin' Up! is concerned:

• Only 2 more weeks to purchase items from this year's retiring stamps and accessories lists - lots of items have already sold out, but you can find those items still in stock here:

Retiring stamps & Retiring Accessories

• Join Stampin' Up! for just £50 - there are 2 more weeks left of the current 'sign up and save' recruitment promotion, where you can join Stampin' Up! for just £50 and choose a starter kit valued at £55. Read all about it here, give me a call if you'd like to chat to me about joining my team or if your decision is already made sign up here.

The biggest news of all today though is that I've finalised the details for my launch party for the new Stampin' Up! 2014 Annual Catalogue - here it is:

This is the first time that I've held a 'big bash' to launch the new catalogue and I'm very excited about it! I'm keen to spread the word locally about the benefits of Stampin' Up! and to meet more fellow experienced and would-be crafters and this will be a great opportunity for people to come along and see what Stampin' Up! is all about and learn more about hosting a party, my local card and papercrafting project classes and touch and feel lots of new product, including the new Project Life product set for scrapbookers and memory-keeping on the go.

New catalogues will be available for customers to take away on the day and there will be lots of offers and incentives for orders placed and parties booked on the day, as well as a raffle, a make and take project and lots of great new product and inspirational displays. If you live in or around Northampton, I would love you to join me.

If you're not local to me, but would like a new catalogue please call or email me with your details and I would be happy to pop one in the post to you in advance of the catalogue launch.

I will be providing lots of updates and 'sneak peeks' here and on my Facebook page over the next couple of weeks, so do stay tuned to join in the excitement of the build up to my new Stampin' Up! 2014 catalogue launch party.

Back shortly with today's creative post - until then, get the 30th June 2-6pm marked down in your diaries!

Well today might be Father's Day, but in the James household there has been an apparently altogether more important celebration - the oldest of my James Juniors, Rebecca, turned 9 today. Her birthday always falls near to Father's Day, but as they actually clashed today she informed Daddy that every day is Father's Day and you'll only be 9 once - so one definitely trumps the other! My lack of blog post yesterday was due to my sheer exhaustion having held a day of party celebrations at home for Rebecca with a little group of friends - I'll tell you more about this another time as this is a Project Life page in the making! - so today I thought I would share the card I made for her.

I finally had a go at one of the 'card in a box' cards that are currently all the rage in the papercrafting world and decided that mine would feature my favourite DSP for birthday cards, Birthday Basics, and one of Rebecca's favoutie foodstuffs - cake! Well, cupcakes to be precise; here is my card, which is A5 size when folded flat:

I took the opportunity to use my 'Create a Cupcake' stamp set; it's on the retiring list, but the co-ordinating punch is staying and there is more cupcake loveliness just around the corner :-) Now I know this card does look rather on the crowded side with cakes popping out all over the place and nicely wobbly on their acetate supports, but when a card is for a 9 year old, excess is the name of the game - along with a little glimmer. A nice sparkly number 9 and a few sparkly stars complete the card. And Rebecca's verdict: "Perfect!"

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Very Vanilla A4 Card Stock	Create A Cupcake - Clear-Mount Stamp	Cupcake Punch	Label Love	Artisan Label Punch
Birthday Basics Designer Series Paper	Raspberry Ripple A4 Card Stock	Raspberry Ripple Classic Stampin' Pad	Summer Starfruit A4 Card Stock	Summer Starfruit Classic Stampin' Pad
Gumball Green Classic Stampin' Pad	Card Stock A4 Crisp Cantaloupe	Crisp Cantaloupe Classic Stampin' Pad	Card Stock A4 Bermuda Bay	Bermuda Bay Classic Stampin' Pad
Silver Glimmer Paper	Typeset Alphabet Bigz Die	Medium Window Sheets

Good evening everyone! Apologies for my lack of post yesterday; Rebecca was selecte to compete in an inter-school athletics competition yesterday that unexpectedly took me out of the house for most of the day and then I had a get-together with my lovely team yesterday evening, so I really wasn't at home all day. Today I have been super busy with my preparations for Rebecca's birthday weekend and along with baking and decorating a two tier cake today and finishing off the decorations, this is truly the first time I've sat down all day!

So today I have the last of the cards we made at this month's card class using the Springtime Hello stamp set:

I had a request for a black and white card using the set and this is what I came up with. This is quite different to the other cards we made (you can see the full set below) and the monochrome colour scheme and clean and simple lines of the card make it look quite sharp and modern. Just a simple piece of Modern Medley DSP matted on Basic Black, and then the flower image stamped in black, mounted and positioned at an angle to the DSP, and a central strip to draw your eye to the image, with 3 rhinestones coloured black with a Sharpie marker to add a little accent. I left my card sentiment-free as this is the sort of card you can use for any occasion.

That's all from me; I need to get some sleep before the onslaught of a group of 8 and 9 year olds tomorrow ready to craft and party in style! Back tomorrow with another card; until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Very Vanilla A4 Card Stock	Jet Black Stazon Pad	Stazon Cleaner	Springtime Hello	Modern Medley Designer Series Paper
Basic Black A4 Card Stock	Basic Rhinestones Jewel Accents

With Father's Day coming up this weekend, I thought I should share a few more suitably themed cards with you for anyone in need of last minute ideas! Today's card has both something old and something new - here's my card:

I used Soft Suede for my card base, then created a simple central panel by stamping the globe image from the new Traveler stamp set in Versamark and heat embossed in gold embossing powder. I created a mask for the globe using a piece of scrap cardstock, then carefully sponged in the colours on the globe using sponge daubers and Island Indigo, Garden Green and Encore Gold inks. Here's a close up of the central image:

This is one of those cards that looks so impressive in real life and the colours are really vibrant against the gold. I then matted this panel on some brushed gold cardstock and finished the card by stamping the 'Happy Father's Day' sentiment from the Delightful Dozen stamp set (it's on the retiring list) and heat embossing in gold, then stamping it in Versamark again slightly offset to create a shadow and add some depth to the card. I also created a slightly altered version of the same card, this time stamping the sentiment on a piece of Island Indigo to inject a little more colour - browns have their place, but I don't believe that just because cards are for men, they shouldn't have some brighter colours too.

These cards would work equally well for a male birthday or other masculine card with a change of sentiment; or maybe even a graduation or travel-themed card. That's all from me today; back tomorrow with another card. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Soft Suede A4 Card Stock	Very Vanilla A4 Card Stock	Island Indigo A4 Card Stock	Brushed Gold A4 Card Stock	Versamark Pad
Embossing Buddy	Gold Stampin' Emboss Powder	Garden Green Classic Stampin' Pad	Island Indigo Classic Stampin' Pad	Gold Metallic Encore Pad