It's Sunday and time for a new challenge over at The Paper Players! This week it is the turn of the lovely Ann to host and she has the following theme challenge for us: 

The great outdoors: now I know our challenge badge this week shows trees, flowers and wildlife, but for me when I thought about what 'the great outdoors' meant to me, it was more about camping, rambling and cycling - so off I went in search of stamp sets to fit the bill. After much fruitless searching, suddenly there it was just staring me in the face - the top sheet in the open pack of Schoolhouse designer series paper on my desk was the perfect feature for my card:

Bicycles! We are a family of cyclists and are fortunate to live near to lots of great cycle paths and countryside that is accessible to cyclists. so often ride out together as a family. I really wanted the paper to take centre stage, so I went on the hunt for a small, suitable sentiment to pair it with and decided upon this one from the Project Life 'Moments Like These' stamp set which was just enough to finish my card. Another great example of where these sets can be used for memory keeping and a lot more besides!

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

Your cards can be inspired by any aspect of life outdoors so get your thinking caps on and I look forward to seeing what you make of our theme in the gallery this week. I am hoping that today will be another warm and sunny one, with a BBQ lunch on the menu. Some time in the garden and a restful day is on the cards!

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Schoolhouse Designer Series Paper	Project Life Moments Like These Photopolymer Stamp Set	Smoky Slate Classic Stampin' Pad	Smoky Slate A4 Cardstock	Pacific Point Classic Stampin' Pad
Pacific Point A4 Cardstock	Tangerine Tango Classic Stampin' Pad	Daffodil Delight Classic Stampin' Pad	Whisper White A4 Cardstock

A quick post from me today as I've had a full-on busy day: each of the James Juniors has had a birthday party to attend today, followed by a swimming gala, the first for Ben at this venue. Both had great swims with some great personal best timings, so a god day had by all. Today's trio of cards are another entry for the Fab Friday challenge where in colours are the order of the day:

I wanted to create a card that use all five colours and decided to go with a simple design that showed off the fabulous new in-colour lace trim - take a look:

I used a card base of extra thick Whisper White cardstock, matted with an in colour (this one is Cucumber Crush), followed by a Whisper White panel embossed with the Large Dolka Dot Textured Impressions Embossing folder then a random colour pattern of dots using all of the in colours with the spot from the Work of Art stamp set. I finished with a co-ordinating piece of in colour lace trim, tied with a bow of white baker's twine. I wanted to make a couple of cards that were post-friendly and this lace trim is great for a non-bulky trim, however it also makes a beautiful bow - take a look at the Delightful Dijon bow below:

Isn't that just so pretty? I also made a post-friendly version in Watermelon Wonder: 

Since the outside is sentiment-free, I wanted to be sure to include one on the inside:

These are thank you cards destined for some of my customers so a big 'thank you' is definitely appropriate! Do you love this year's new in colours? Which one is your favourite? Do let me know in your comments below.

Back tomorrow with a new challenge over at The Paper Players; until then, happy stampin'! 

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Work Of Art Clear-Mount Stamp Set	Polka Dot Textured Impressions Embossing Folder	Big Shot	Whisper White A4 Thick Cardstock	2015-2017 In Color A4 Cardstock & Classic Stampin' Pads Kit
Cucumber Crush 1" Dotted Lace Trim	Delightful Dijon 1" Dotted Lace Trim	Watermelon Wonder 1" Dotted Lace Trim	Whisper White Baker's Twine	Fabulous Four Clear-Mount Stamp Set

Good morning everyone! It's Thursday and time for a new challenge at Create with Connie and Mary where we have a great colour challenge for you this week:

I chose to use this week's layout over at CAS(E) This Sketch for my card this week and went for some bold pops of colour against my neutral background:

I used Crumb Cake for my card base, and instead of leaving it completely plain, I stamped the hatched background stamp from 'You've Got This' in Crumb Cake to add a little interest to the main body of the panel. This is such a useful stamp and can be used in so many ways, not just with the flower in the set with it. I then added a layered flower cut with the Flower Fair framelits and finished with a Real Red candy dot (I get through these faster than any other colour!) and my die cut sentiment. Super simple and very easy to recreate and would work in lots of other colourways too. 

Short and sweet from me today - do check out what the rest of the DT have been up to and I look forward to visiting your gallery creations this week. I'll be back tomorrow with another project; until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

It's Wednesday and today I have a card for this week's challenge over at Less is More. I always follow this great challenge site, although don't always find time to enter as often as I'd like (and even when I do things don't always go to plan - my attempt for last week's stencilling challenge was something of a disaster and ended up in the dustbin!) This week these lovely ladies have a sketch challenge though and never one to turn down a good sketch, this week's attempt was much more successful. Here's the sketch:

And here's my card:

I actually made this card to send to a friend who has been having a tough time of it recently and needed to know that it's ok to 'offload' once in a while - that's what friends are for. I so love this sentiment and it was the perfect message. I stamped the tree in a combination of Crumb Cake and Wild Wasabi with a sprinkle of purple flowers beneath it. I did add a border layer to my image and sentiment panels in Perfect Plum, but I was careful to leave my image uncluttered and as much 'white space' as possible around the panels to retain the clean and simple feel. The sentiment is one long stamp, but I split it here and inked the first word in a different colour, for emphasis and simply to fit it on the panel. I even remembered to add a little envelope decoration too - bonus!

I hope you like today's card; don't forget to check out this week's extended range of Wednesday Weekly Deals and the updated Clearance Rack - find full details on my earlier post here. I will be back tomorrow with my card for this week's new challenge over at create with Connie and Mary. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Sheltering Tree Photopolymer Stamp Set	Whisper White A4 Thick Cardstock	Perfect Plum A4 Cardstock	Perfect Plum Classic Stampin' Pad	Crumb Cake Classic Stampin' Pad
Wild Wasabi Classic Stampin' Pad

It's Wednesday and you know what that means: a new collection of Wednesday Weekly Deals! This week's deals are even sweeter though - there are more offers, with increased reductions of up to 30% on Weekly Deals this month, although there are allocated quantities at the increased offer price; once they're gone, the price will revert to RRP, so don't delay in ordering if there is something on your wish list. As always, a new collection of deals will be announced next Wednesday.

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 new Hostess Code for July UPCSWX2C if your order is under £150 and be sure to make sure that you don't check the 'no contact' box if you'd like to be kept updated with the progress of you order and receive a little thank you in the post from me. 

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:

2014-2016 In Color Designer Washi Tape	7/8" Scallop Circle Punch	Build A Banner Kit	Cucumber Crush A4 Cardstock
Happy Heart Textured Impressions Embossing Folder	Kraft Tag A Bag Gift Bags	Leaflets Framelits Dies	Lost Lagoon 5/8" Striped Cotton Ribbon
Sweet Li'l Things A4 Cardstock Assortment Pack	Tag A Bag Accessory Pack	Timeless Elegance A4 Cardstock Assortment Pack

Lots of great offers on there - those leaf framelits are a bargain and some great cardstock packs to match your DSP. Check out the in-colour washi tape and gorgeous Lost Lagoon cotton ribbon too. As if that wasn't enough, the Clearance Rack has updated today too with some great bargains to be had with 60% or more off. Check it out here.

Back shortly with today's creative post; meanwhile, happy shopping!

Good morning everyone! I have had a most enjoyable morning with two of my newest Stampin' Up! team members carrying out some induction training, all finished off with a little cream tea to reward them for their efforts! Today is the last day of the '2 free stamp sets' sign up offer where you can get any 2 catalogue stamp sets of your choice for free in addition to your £130 of goods for £99.

You don't want to miss out on this opportunity! You can get the full scoop here or if you're ready to sign up, just click here to join my team. If you're on the fence and are still wondering if my team is for you, then do give me a call for a chat before making your decision - I would love to tell you more.

Today I have a quick post for you to just squeeze in an entry to this week's challenge over at Pals Paper Arts where they have a great sketch challenge this week:

My card this week was very much inspired by the one that Mary Fish made using this sketch - you can see her card here, I just love her clean and graphic style - and I knew this layout offered me the perfect opportunity to add to my stash of end of term teacher thank you cards with a really quick make - take a look:

I decided to add to my collection of teacher thank you cards and combined a card base of Basic Grey with a mat and strip of Whisper White and a 2 1/2" circle of the Schoolhouse DSP in the alphabet pattern with an apple that I cut with my Silhouette Cameo e-cutter and a 'thanks' die cut using the new Greetings Thinlits in Basic Black. 

Super simple, ultra modern and easy to re-create if you've lots of cards to make.

I hope you like today's card; I'll be back tomorrow with another creative project and news of this week's weekly deals, which from tomorrow until 4th August will be even better than usual, with lots more items with 30% off until the allocated stock at that price is gone, when it will revert back to standard catalogue price. The Clearance Rack is also due to update, with many items 60% off, so keep your eye out for some bargains!

Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Greetings Thinlits Dies	Schoolhouse Designer Series Paper	Real Red A4 Cardstock	Basic Gray A4 Cardstock	Basic Black A4 Cardstock
Whisper White A4 Cardstock	Garden Green A4 Cardstock	Chocolate Chip A4 Cardstock	2-1/2" Circle Punch	Brights Candy Dots
Big Shot

Happy Monday everyone! Well, we didn't manage to barbeque yesterday as it was the worst weather day of the week here in the UK, but no matter - this week is supposed to be a scorcher, despite the fact that it's the start of Wimbledon Tennis Fortnight (a sure recipe for rain!) so I'm sure there will be lots of opportunity. My week is shaping up to be a busy one - with only three weeks until the end of the school term, there is something on pretty much every other day between now and the end of term so forgive me if my blogging becomes brief! Anyway, a good start to the week as I've two cards to share today! This first is my card for this week's challenge over at Colour Q:

Don't you just love those flip flops?! The colours along with the butterflies prompted me to create a fun 'cutting edge' card that I am also linking up with the current challenge over at SUO Challenges where they are asking us to create a card that features a cut edge that is something other than a straight line. This is what I came up with:

I used Soft Sky for my card base, then diecut four butterflies in Night of Navy using the smallest butterfly in the new Bold Butterfly framelits and adhered them to the edge of my card, carefully cutting around them by hand to remove the edge of the card base and expose the back panel. I then cut another two butterflies each in Daffodil Delight and Marina Mist and paper-pieced the small pieces into the navy butterflies. I stamped the sentiment from Watercolour Wonder onto the front of my card in Night of Navy and stamped the spotty strip repeatedly along the back inside edge of the card in Soft Sky for some added detail behind the butterflies, although you can't see this in the above photo as it's not flat and only visible when closed (I need to take another picture which I will add to this post later - these type of cards are so tricky to photograph!). This card looks so pretty in real life - the fussy cut edge really lifts this card and makes it something special.

My second card today is using this week's sketch over at Freshly Made Sketches where the lovely Jen Mitchell has a great sketch that would work so well for so many layouts:

I flipped the sketch through 180 degrees (it's allowed!) to create a rather topical card that was inspired by a cupcake of all things that appeared in my Facebook feed over the weekend, commemorating the decision by the US Supreme Court over the weekend to legalise same sex marriage across all US states:

I used a rainbow of strips of cardstock, punching each with my Hearts Border punch before adhering to my base of extra-thick Whisper White cardstock (love this for card bases!) I then took the punched out hearts and adhered these individually in a row beneath the negative punched space on the strip above. My focal point is a couple of 2" circles, the first in Whisper White and stamped with one of the sentiments in the 'Groovy Love' stamp set, inked up with Pacific Point and Real Red Stampin' Write markers. The second circle was punched from Real Red cardstock, with a heart punched out of the centre using the Sweetheart punch so that the sentiment could show through the negative space and popped up over the first on Dimensionals for added depth. Very 'gay pride' with the hearts and rainbows, don't you agree? I am also entering this card into a demonstrator-only challenge that Stampin' Up! are currently running with the tagline #punchitup where we have to use a combination of two of four specific punches and as you can see, I went with hearts!

That's my creative post for today; I will be back tomorrow with another project and may be back in the meantime with other news, depending on how far I get through today's 'to do' list so do pop back later! Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Card One:

Magnetic Platform	Big Shot	Bold Butterfly Framelits Dies	Watercolor Wings Photopolymer Stamp Set	Night Of Navy Classic Stampin' Pad
Night Of Navy A4 Cardstock	Marina Mist A4 Cardstock	Daffodil Delight A4 Cardstock	Soft Sky A4 Cardstock	Soft Sky Classic Stampin' Pad

Sweetheart Punch	Hearts Border Punch	2" Circle Punch	Whisper White A4 Thick Cardstock	Brights Stampin' Write Markers
Real Red A4 Cardstock	Pumpkin Pie A4 Cardstock	Daffodil Delight A4 Cardstock	Cucumber Crush A4 Cardstock	Tempting Turquoise A4 Cardstock
Pacific Point A4 Cardstock	Rich Razzleberry A4 Cardstock

It's Sunday and time for our new challenge over at The Paper Players! I really enjoyed our gallery full of summer treats last week; this week should be easier on the waistline though, as the lovely Nance has a great sketch challenge for us:

My card features an altogether more healthy treat this week in the form of apples, on a tree created with the Sprinkles of Life stamp set and co-ordinating tree builder punch:

My card also features three of the five new in-colours: Tip Top Taupe, Cucumber Crush and Watermelon Wonder so I am also linking up with the team over at Fab Friday as their challenge is all about the new in-colours this week. I used Tip Top Taupe for my card base, then adhered a piece of Whisper White to the card front. I embossed another piece of Taupe with my woodgrain textured embossing folder then using my Big Shot and Circles Framelits cut away a partial circle from one side before adhering this on top of the white layer. I stamped the tree trunk in Taupe onto the white panel, then stamped my leaves in Cucumber Crush and my apples in Watermelon Wonder onto Whisper White and punched them out with the co-ordinating tree builder punch. I wanted a full tree so punched three treetops and layered them to create my tree, adding the last one with a dimensional to create some lift. For my banners I used a strip of Watermelon Wonder and a piece of green patterned paper from the Cherry on Top DSP stack, tied with white baker's twine and flagged with the triple banner punch. I stamped my sentiment in white Stazon onto Basic Black and cropped it tightly. I finished with another punched apple, which I covered in Crystal Effects to make it nice and shiny, although it's hard to see in the photo above. The Sprinkles of Life Stamp stamp set is so versatile with so many creative options; not only that, every purchase benefits the Ronald McDonald House Charity too as £2 is donated for every stamp set purchased.

With only three more weeks until the end of the school year, I am needing to make more and more teacher thank you cards, so this one is definitely heading for the teacher pile. Well, an apple for the teacher as the saying goes - or in this case, six!

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

I love a good sketch challenge so I look forward to seeing what you make of this one in the gallery this week. If the weather holds we may manage to squeeze in another weekend BBQ - keep your fingers crossed for me!

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Sprinkles Of Life Photopolymer Stamp Set	Tree Builder Punch	Banner Triple Punch	Cherry On Top Designer Series Paper Stack	Circles Collection Framelits Dies
Magnetic Platform	Big Shot	Stampin' Dimensionals	Whisper White A4 Cardstock	Watermelon Wonder Classic Stampin' Pad
Watermelon Wonder A4 Cardstock	Tip Top Taupe Classic Stampin' Pad	Tip Top Taupe A4 Cardstock	Cucumber Crush Classic Stampin' Pad	Cucumber Crush A4 Cardstock
Whisper White Baker's Twine	Crystal Effects

It's the weekend and following a glorious day here in the UK, today I have a card to share for this week's Mojo Monday challenge where this week's sketch is all about the layers:

The minute I saw this sketch I knew exactly what I was going to do with the central circle; I bought the 'Hello Life' stamp set for the big feature sentiment but don't get to use it often on cards because it's quite large, so this layout gave me the perfect opportunity:

I stamped my sentiment in Watermelon Wonder onto Very Vanilla and decided to use another of the pieces of Designer Series Paper from the Sweet L'il Things pack as my background, then used the featured colours as bold blocks of colour for my rectangular layers and my banner. I love the patterns in this pack - whilst this does feature some cute animals, I think it is quite a fun pattern, that works for non-baby cards too. Truth is, as I was perusing I decided this paper makes me happy - so I went with it!

Short and sweet from me today; I'll be back tomorrow with a card for this week's new challenge over at The Paper Players. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Hello Life Photopolymer Stamp Set	Sweet Li'l Things Designer Series Paper	Banner Triple Punch	Very Vanilla A4 Cardstock	Watermelon Wonder Classic Stampin' Pad
Watermelon Wonder A4 Cardstock	Hello Honey A4 Cardstock	Tangelo Twist A4 Cardstock	Pool Party A4 Cardstock	Circles Collection Framelits Dies
Magnetic Platform	Big Shot	Stampin' Dimensionals

It's Thursday and you know what that means: time for a new challenge over at Create With Connie and Mary! This week we have a sketch challenge for you:

I decided to go with another card featuring the Pretty Petals DSP; this time, one of the really bold patterns in the stack:

I used Calypso Coral and Old Olive for my mat and base layer and the band across the front of the card, then used the bold patterned DSP to cover my card front. After adhering the band, I tied two lengths of Old Olive baker's twine around the front of my card before adhering my layered circle. Given how busy the pattern of the paper is, I decided to leave my focal point 'clean' and stamped the thank you sentiment from the 'Tin Of Cards' stamp set onto a circle of Very Vanilla. For my embellishment, I stamped the round stamp from the 'Awesomely Artistic' stamp set in Calypso Coral onto Very Vanilla and punched it out with my 1" circle punch. I added an antique brad (deliberately offset) before adhering to my card. 

This paper is quite different to the one I used on yesterday's card, but equally lovely I think. I can see me getting through this stack quite quickly!

That's all from me today; do check out the other DT member cards and we look forward to seeing you in the gallery this week. 

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: