Today I'm sharing my design team card for our new challenge over at As you See It where it's time for a 'fill in the blank' challenge chosen by my dear friend Jan:

Time to confess, crafty shoppers - what was the last thing you purchased? At first glance you might be thinking I'm pulling your leg today, as my card features the 'Sweet Songbirds' stamp set and co-ordinating punch, both of which I've had for ages and shared several times before. Look more closely though and you will see I paired them with my most recent craft purchase: the 'Hooray For Surprises' bundle - take a look:

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

Hooray For Surprises - The 'Hooray For Surprises' bundle is so fun! The dies create perforated edges with a tab that allow you to easily create your own interactive cards. Simply pull the tab to reveal the message inside! I've been creating with this bundle a lot in recent weeks as it features in the next 'Join In With Joanne and Jan' craft tutorial bundle that I create with the lovely Jan Clothier. There are so many different ways you can create with the stamp set and dies together in this bundle, but for my card today I wanted to use one of the dies to show that there are tons of possibilities when you combine them with other sets too. I used Jen T's fabulous sketch over at Freshly Made Sketches this week as my starting point (turned through 90 degrees) and paired the largest of the round circle tab dies with my pair of birds and nest for a fun gender reveal card.

Here's the card front with a close up of the tab before opening:

It's A ... - When the tab is removed, there is a message underneath that reveals whether or not the mummy and daddy bird parents are expecting a boy or a girl - check it out below:

Isn't that so fun?! I made two cards, showing both boy and girl inserts. Here's a close up of the baby girl version: 

 And here's the baby boy version:

I stamped the surprise greeting with a combination of sets: the 'It's a' is from a couple of the sets in the Sweet Songbirds set and the 'Baby Boy/Baby Girl' comes from a long-retired set called 'Itty Bitty Baby', but you could just as easily hand write your own message or type one on the computer. So what do you think? I think this would make a lovely card to announce an impending birth to soon-to-be grandparents, for example, but I'd love to hear your thoughts - why not leave me a comment below!

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. 

Remember if you purchase the 'Hooray For Surprises' bundle from either myself if you are in the UK or Europe or Jan if you are in New Zealand, then you will receive our tutorial featuring this set for FREE, along with access to our Private Facebook Group for more tips and tricks too. In addition, if you purchase before the end of February you will only be £1 away from a free Sale-A-Bration gift too!

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.
• In a Fill in the Blank challenge, complete the sentence in the Challenge Banner with the phrase that is true for you and create your project using the words you used. Tell us what you said in your blog or on your site.

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

HOORAY FOR SURPRISES BUNDLE (ENGLISH) (44.00)	SWEET SONGBIRDS PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (18.00)	SONGBIRD BUILDER PUNCH (21.00)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (8.50)	BLENDING BRUSHES (13.00)	BALMY BLUE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)
TAHITIAN TIDE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	TAHITIAN TIDE A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)	FLIRTY FLAMINGO CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	FLIRTY FLAMINGO A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)	EARLY ESPRESSO CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	PECAN PIE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)
GRANNY APPLE GREEN CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	DAFFODIL DELIGHT A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)	TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (6.25)	BALMY BLUE A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)	BALMY BLUE A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)	BUBBLE BATH A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)

It's Tuesday and time for a new challenge over at CAS Colours & Sketches. Rachel is hosting for the month of September and our first challenge is a colour challenge: 

For my card today I paired these lovely summery colours with the sketch over at Try Stamping on Tuesday and the 'choose 2' challenge over at Just Add Ink (I chose tearing and twine) to make a baby card for the challenge over at CAS on Friday:

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

My card is a pretty straightforward combination of elements and it was something of a happy accident that it worked for each of the challenges that I'm linking up with today. Let me explain! So I started with Rachel's summery colours and combined with the late return of summer sunshine here in the UK I was inspired to look through summery sets on my shelf. I happened upon my Sailboat Builder Punch, which has been neglected of late now that the co-ordinating stamp set has retired, so I pulled it off the shelf to give it some love. I am not a big one for tearing paper as my regular readers will know but when I saw Lou Kitzleman's card over at Just Add Ink this week I totally fell in love with it (you can see her fabulous card here) and whilst I will undoubtedly CASE her card another time for fun, I wanted to use the idea of the torn strips on my card today. In order to preserve my 'white space' I used the sketch over at Try Stamping on Tuesday (love their layouts!) and created a corner detail of torn cardstock using some old Coastal Cabana coloured coredinations cardstock from my stash to give the feeling of waves. I punched out my sailboat using a scrap of Starry Sky cardstock and another of Lemon Lolly striped Bright & Beautiful designer series paper for the sails and finished with a sentiment from the 'Sweet Songbirds' stamp set. I added everything to my card and finished my sailboat with a twine bow:

I just love these bright colours for a slightly less traditional new baby card and I'm so pleased with how this card came 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. 

What will you make with this week's colours? As a reminder, for our colour challenges, you must use all of the stated challenge colours. You may also use neutral colours; however, the challenge colours should be the most noticeable ones featured on your card. We use Stampin' Up! colour names for reference, but you are welcome to use any other companies' products as long as you match the challenge colours as closely as possible.

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

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 fun theme challenge for you to work with:

I  used Jen's layout over at Freshly Made Sketches and the fresh colour palette over at Color Dare (I used all of the colours except Linen) and made a thank you card featuring a sweet songbird - take a look:

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

I used a stencil I had made previously using one of the Basic Border Dies along with a blending brush to create a cloudy sky using Pool Party ink, then added a solid panel in the same colour that I had embossed with music using the Merry Melody 3D Embossing Folder as the backdrop for my songbird. I stamped my branch and the bird's legs onto a piece of white cardstock and fussy cut them, then stamped my bright blue songbird in Tahitian Tide, punched it out using my co-ordinating Songbird Builder Punch and popped the bird up on dimensionals for a little extra lift. A stamped punny musical greeting and a trio of additional music notes complete my scene:

I like the addition of the texture behind the bluebird and love that this bundle worked for our music theme - I haven't used it nearly enough! Not to mention I was a little pressed for time this week, so I was pleased that this card came together quite easily. I wanted to make a few in alternative colourways, but they will have to wait for another time!

If the Sweet Songbirds bundle is on your wishlist, you might be pleased to know that the Songbird Builder Punch can now be yours FREE with a £45 purchase as one of the additional products that are available this month as part of Stampin' Up!'s Sale-A-Bration promotion - for full details read last week's post here.

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; ours will be a homework-filled one! I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

SWEET SONGBIRDS BUNDLE (ENGLISH) (32.25)	MERRY MELODY 3D EMBOSSING FOLDER (9.50)	POOL PARTY A4 CARDSTOCK (8.75)	POOL PARTY CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (7.50)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (8.25)	TAHITIAN TIDE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (7.50)
PALE PAPAYA CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (7.50)	PEAR PIZZAZZ CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (7.50)	CRUMB CAKE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (7.50)	TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (5.75)

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

I went down the middle column with house, patterned paper and tree/wood and using the sketch layout over at SUO Challenges decided to make a 'welcome to your new home' card - take a look:

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

I used one of the house pattern sheets from the Rings of Love designer series paper (free during Sale-A-Bration with a £45 purchase) and added a panel to my Mint Macaron cardbase, whilst fussy cutting another house to form the centre of my clustered focal point. I used the Label Me Lovely punch to punch a piece of white cardstock and added my welcome greeting, then tucked this behind a layered tree ring. You can't fully see the detail on this card, but I just love the new Tree Rings hybrid embossing folder and co-ordinated dies - so much texture and detail! I added some branches cut using other dies in this set that I watercoloured, along with some trees cut using the Tree Lot Dies which I watercoloured to mimic the loose colouring of the DSP and layered all of the elements together:

The papers in this pack are great and I think this is one of my favourite designs; it's just perfect for a 'new home' card. Oh, and did I mention it's FREE?! Gotta love Sale-A-Bration!

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

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

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

Enjoy your day; I'll be back tomorrow with another project for our new challenge over at As You See It. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

RINGS OF LOVE 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£0.00)	TREE RINGS HYBRID EMBOSSING FOLDER (£34.00)	TREE LOT DIES (£0.00)	SWEET SONGBIRDS PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£18.00)	LABEL ME LOVELY PUNCH (£18.00)	WATER PAINTERS (£13.00)
FLUID 100 WATERCOLOR PAPER (£8.50)	BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£9.75)	MINT MACARON A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)	NIGHT OF NAVY A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)	NIGHT OF NAVY CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	GRANNY APPLE GREEN CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)
SOFT SUEDE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	SOFT SUEDE A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)	CRUMB CAKE A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)

Happy Friday everyone - the weekend is in sight! Today I'm sharing my design team card for our new challenge over at As you See It where it's time for a recipe challenge:

I made a very special card to share with you today! You know when you get an idea and you just can't rest until you make it a reality? Yes, that was today's card! My card to welcome a new baby features the new Sweet Songbirds bundle - take a look:

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

Sweet Songbirds - Everyone loves a good punch bundle and the Sweet Songbirds bundle, comprising the stamp set of the same name and the Songbird Builder Punch, is definitrly a great addition to your crafting collection. Perfect to welcome someone to a new home or to welcome a new baby, for thank yous, news notes or any kind of celebration (even Christmas - these birds would make great robins!), the Sweet Songbirds bundle has it all. The punch will either punch the stamped image of the large bird in the set, or allow you to simply punch a bird from cardstock. This is particularly useful to easily create mirrored birds, as I've done on my card today. 

Double Slider Reveal - What might not be immediately obvious at first glance, is that today's card is a double slider card. When you pull the tab at the side of the card, the mama and papa birds slide out to reveal their baby bird in the nest:

I might be biased, but I think this is such a cute idea! 

Here's a short video clip showing you how that works:

I'm mindful that today's post doesn't show the detail of the 'how' I created my double slider; I watched a number of actually very frustrating YouTube videos, and ultimately ended up re-engineering the mechanism until it is so super easy! It really needs a video to explain it though and I didn't then have time to film one this week, but I will pick this up and share in another post with you next week since I feel like I owe it to the crafting community to demystify this type of card!! I finished my sentiment and re-stamped my baby songbird on the inside of my card to finish.

A Recipe For Success - Whilst I was all about bring my creative ideas to fruition this week, it's recipe week over at As You See It and so worth me recapping on how I incorporated the elements of the recipe in my card:

• Diecut or punch - Songbird Builder Punch and Basic Borders Dies (I used the cloud shaped as a stencil to add clouds to my background with a blending brush and some Balmy Blue ink)
• Embossing folder - Merry Melody 3D Embossing Folder (This covers my slider mechanism)
• Something beginning with 'B' - Birds and baby
• Pastel colours - Balmy Blue, So Saffron and Polished Pink
• Something shiny - A sparkly in-colour vellum flower and single rhinestone jewel to decorate mama bird (almost missed this one!)

That's everything - phew! What a sweet little pair:

This was such a fun card to make!

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.

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

SWEET SONGBIRDS BUNDLE (ENGLISH) (£32.25)	MERRY MELODY 3D EMBOSSING FOLDER (£9.50)	BASIC BORDERS DIES (£27.00)	POLISHED PINK A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)	BALMY BLUE A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)	BALMY BLUE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)
SO SAFFRON A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)	SO SAFFRON CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	GRANNY APPLE GREEN CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	SOFT SUEDE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	CRUMB CAKE A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)	BASIC BLACK A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)
TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (£5.75)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	RHINESTONE BASIC JEWELS (£5.75)	BLENDING BRUSHES (£11.75)