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

I thought that the main panel on LeAnne's sketch was crying out to frame something, so decided to create a quick and easy Christmas card using the panel with an aperture to frame a Memories & More card from the Beary Christmas set in the upcoming mini catalogue. - take a look:

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

The new Beary Christmas Memories & More cards feature polar bears, trees, presents and patterns and are just great for quick and easy Christmas cards. I added a small one featuring a large sentiment and trimmed slightly to a Balmy Blue card base, then taking a smaller panel of Balmy Blue, cut a square aperture using the Stylish Shapes Dies then ran the whole panel through my diecutting machine with my (retired) Wintry 3D embossing folder - check out the lovely embossed effect in more detail on the close up below:

I added a Real Red ribbon and bow to complete my card. So simple, yet the embossing adds a really pretty detail. I'm linking today's card up over at 52 Christmas Card Throwdown where they are asking us to make Christmas cards that feature an embossing folder this week.

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 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 Ann to host this week and she has a fun clean and simple challenge for us to work with:

I love clean and simple week! With the theme of 'insects' I was tempted to make another bee card this week, but instead decided to make a card showcasing one of the prettiest embellishments in the current catalogue - take a look:

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

Brass butterflies - did you spot them? I stamped a simple spray of flowers and thank you sentiment from the 'Dainty Delight' stamp set, coloured my flowers with a variety of Blends (I've shared those that are still current below) and added a trio of brass butterflies for my insect embellishment:

These butterfly embellishments are small but pack a punch - when the catch the light they are so pretty! A super simple card today - #simplestamping at its best!

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. 

I'm also linking up today's card over at Color Dare; I went across the bottom row paprika/shortbread/mocha and also used honey yellow too.

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 tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

DAINTY DELIGHT CLING STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (24.00)	BRUSHED BRASS BUTTERFLIES (9.50)	VERY VANILLA A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (8.50)	EARLY ESPRESSO CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	DAFFODIL DELIGHT STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (9.50)	CAJUN CRAZE STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (9.50)
PUMPKIN PIE STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (9.50)	COPPER CLAY STAMPIN’ BLENDS COMBO PACK (9.50)

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

I love these warm colours together! I paired them with Jen T's fabulous sketch over at Freshly Made Sketches this week and grabbed one of my new sets to create a pretty birthday card - take a look:

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

Textured Floral - You know when you think you have enough floral sets and you couldn't possibly need another one? Yep, that was so not me when we had the recent stamp sale! I picked up the Textured Floral stamp set and couldn't wait to create something with it. The texture on these stamps adds so much detail and whether you use in conjunction with the co-ordinating dies and layer or use the stamps along to create more of a collage feel, this is a stamp set with lots of possibilities. It's a great set for a beginner stamper too - you really can't go wrong with it! I stamped a mirrored collection of florals in opposing corners and added some additional Calypso Coral ink with a blending brush to achieve even greater warmth and colour.

A Straightforward Sketch? - I love Jen's sketch this week and it was perfect for me to experiment with my corner florals. When it came to that sentiment though, I dithered for ages! I did consider a simple horizontal sentiment stamped directly onto my floral panel (a more literal interpretation of the FMS layout), but my sentiment was overpowered by the bold florals. I ended up trying diecut sentiments in various shapes/colours, eventually settling on a white-on-black sentiment cut with one of my circular Stylish Shapes Dies. I added a twist of gingham ribbon behind it for a little extra detail:

I like this version better and I think with these bold colours the addition of black as a neutral works well. 

Finishing Touches - Finally you can see a hint of the decoration I added to the front of the envelope; I carried the design to the inside of the card too. No naked envelopes or insides here! I have lots of September birthdays to prepare for, so this one will be heading into my stash. I am looking forward to having more opportunities to play with this set!

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 have nothing on, so will just be enjoying the peace and quiet! I'll be back soon with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

TEXTURED FLORAL PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (23.00)	STYLISH SHAPES DIES (28.00)	BLACK & WHITE 1/4" (6.4 MM) GINGHAM RIBBON (6.75)	BASIC BLACK A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)	VERSAMARK PAD (9.00)	BASICS EMBOSSING POWDERS (17.00)
BLACKBERRY BLISS A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)	CALYPSO CORAL A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)	BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (10.00)	BLACKBERRY BLISS CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	CALYPSO CORAL CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	SWEET SORBET CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)
DAFFODIL DELIGHT CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	BLENDING BRUSHES (13.00)

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

It is more like winter here in the UK at the moment, with rain and chilly winds and generally quite miserable weather-wise, so it was great to see the warm summer colours and images on the badge for Claire's theme this week - so there will be summer vibes inside, even if not outside! My card today features a staple of summer - ice cream, although I can eat it all year round, to be honest! My summer ice-creams were inspired by the cones in the Inspired By photo this week - mine are not in an upturned tower though, instead they are filled with colourful ice cream - take a look:

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

With no current stamp sets featuring ice cream, I had to get creative! These fun ice cream cones were fussy cut from the Les Shoppes designer series paper, curved with my bone folder then layered onto my Very Vanilla cardbase. I paired them with a stamped sentiment from the 'Sweetest Cherries' stamp set, stamped in Calypso Coral and Balmy Blue with the 'sweet' fussy cut and positioned across the cones:

I added a sprinkling of sequins for a little extra summer sparkle to complete my card, which I'm also linking up over at the Alphabet Challenge Blog where the current challenge is 'I is for ice cream'.

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 sheltering from the stormy weather so I'll be inside keeping warm - I see a day of crafting, cooking, jigsaws and movies ahead! I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

SWEETEST CHERRIES PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (17.00)

LES SHOPPES 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (11.75)

PASTEL ADHESIVE-BACKED SEQUINS (7.50)

VERY VANILLA A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (8.50)

CALYPSO CORAL CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)

BALMY BLUE 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 as it's the fifth Sunday of the month she has a fun tic-tac-toe challenge for us to work with:

I had chosen a collection of products that would enable me to meet a number of the boxes on Jaydee's grid; by the time I'd finished my card I actually covered the whole of the grid with the exception of 'masculine'! Atlantic Hearts have a great slimline sketch this week so I combined it with this week's Color Throwdown colours and decided to make a special birthday card - take a look:

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

I have been spending time experimenting with the various combinations of pieces in the Paper Florist Dies recently so I decided I would put my time to good use and create a cascade of using the 'Best Family Ever' stamp set.  flowers in my favourite new Bubble Bath and Lemon Lolly colours, with bright green leaves, clustered around a central sentiment label, onto which I heat embossed a customised sentiment:

This stamp set is perfect to create all kinds of special sentiments; the set doesn't actually include the word 'NANNA', so I created it by combining letters from other names in the set. I also added some stencilling to the card base using a retired decorative mask and some Azure Afternoon ink, blending out from the centre and fading into the white of the base. Stencilling is a great way to add extra detail to the background, without distracting from the detail of the flowers themselves. I'm also linking today's card up over at Inkspirational where they are asking us to use stencils this week too. A couple of loops of Bubble Bath ribbon and a trio of pink pearls complete my card. This card is for the James Juniors to send to their Nanna for her birthday; it's still a few months away, but hey it can't hurt to be organised!

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'm off to Nottingham for more hockey today, so cross your fingers for a fine day! I'll be back soon with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

BEST FAMILY EVER PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (23.00)	PAPER FLORIST DIES (35.00)	NESTED ESSENTIALS DIES (32.00)	3/8" (1 CM) SHEER RIBBON COMBO PACK (11.75)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (8.50)	LEMON LOLLY A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)
BUBBLE BATH A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)	AZURE AFTERNOON A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)	PARAKEET PARTY A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)	VERSAMARK PAD (9.00)	BASICS EMBOSSING POWDERS (17.00)	AZURE AFTERNOON CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)
BLENDING BRUSHES (13.00)

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

The eagle-eyed amongst you might recognise this layout - I actually based it on the Berry Burst card that features the Cheerful Daisies bundle on the front page of the Stampin' up! catalogue. I love layers, so this card layout was right up my street. No Cheerful Daisies today though - instead I'm featuring the Gorgeously Made bundle. Take a look:

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

I used a Night of Navy base, with a tone-on-tone embossed layer featuring the hatch design that is one of the online exclusive embossing folders. Then I added a bright, floral piece of Masterfully Made designer series paper, that I had cut top and bottom using the edge dies in the Gorgeously Made bundle - how beautiful is this paper?! I added a vellum circle to allow the paper to show through, before diecutting two pieces of foliage that highlight two of the colours in the designer paper and adding a sentiment from the bundle using the label die:

I added a (retired) flower embellishment and a couple of sparkly enamel dots to complete my card. I just love the bright colours on this card; I kind of wish I had cut the label shorter and left off the flower embellishment, but hey ho - next time!

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 returned from a two-week vacation yesterday so I am feeling rested, relaxed - and ready to hit the hockey pitch today! I am driving the eldest of the James Juniors to Nottingham today for an umpiring training day, so am hoping at least that it will be dry, if not as warm and sunny as I've been used to! I'll be back soon with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

GORGEOUSLY MADE BUNDLE (ENGLISH) (47.50)	MASTERFULLY MADE 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (11.75)	BASICS 3D EMBOSSING FOLDERS (28.00)	STYLISH SHAPES DIES (28.00)	TINSEL GEMS THREE-PACK (7.00)	VELLUM A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)
NIGHT OF NAVY A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)	NIGHT OF NAVY CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (10.00)	PUMPKIN PIE A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)	MELON MAMBO A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)

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

I used the sketch over at Try Stamping on Tuesday and also played along with their optional twist of camping/campfire and got fussy cutting with my paper snips and some Zoo Crew Designer Series Paper to come up with today's fun clean and simple notecard - take a look:

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

Today's card is all about the designer paper! I had lots of images fussy cut from the Zoo Crew designer paper so I chose this one of the lion, added some additional colour to him with my Stampin' Blends markers and adhered him and some trees that I also fussy cut from the paper to a stitched oval, to which I'd added some Starry Sky and Parakeet Party inks with some blending brushes to ground my campfire scene (I also added a flick of clear Wink of Stella to give my sky a starry night feel, although it is difficult to see this on the photo). I anchored my oval with a trio of strips featuring some of the black and white patterns from the Zoo Crew papers and stamped a vertical sentiment from the 'charming Sentiments' stamp set:

Whilst you might be forgiven at first glance for thinking I missed the point of Anne Marie's challenge this week, you will see my lion is busy roasting his pink marshmallows over his open campfire. yum - s'mores, anyone?! Fussy cutting the individual images is such a fun way to use designer paper! A little goes a long way and this kind of minimalist layout is perfect for clean and simple cards. I'm also linking today's card up over at CAS on Friday where designer paper is the theme of their current challenge too.

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's sun loungers rather than campfires for me, but I'm not complaining! I'll be back on Tuesday with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

ZOO CREW 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (11.75)	CHARMING SENTIMENTS PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (22.00)	STARRY SKY CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	PARAKEET PARTY CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	BLENDING BRUSHES (13.00)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (8.50)
TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (6.25)	WINK OF STELLA GLITTER BRUSH (7.50)	WILD WHEAT STAMPIN’ BLENDS COMBO PACK (9.50)	COPPER CLAY STAMPIN’ BLENDS COMBO PACK (9.50)	BUBBLE BATH STAMPIN’ BLENDS COMBO PACK (9.50)

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

These colours definitely made me think florals so I grabbed my Cheerful Daisies Dies for a pretty birthday card - take a look:

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

I've seen a few lovely cards online where the daisies have been paired with blue gingham and I thought the Bubble Bath pink and blue/green of Lost Lagoon, along with lots of white, would pair beautifully with some of the Berry Burst Glorious Gingham designer series paper. I used that for my background, then added a vellum diecut circle base for my trio of layered daises. I cut my daisies in white and added some Bubble Bath ink the centres of the bottom layer, along with a hint of ink added with a blending brush to the bottom layer petals, then I cut out lots of the leaves from this die in Lost Lagoon and tucked them in around the base. A white baker's twine bow, a trio of tinsel gems and a simple birthday sentiment from 'Sending Smiles' complete my card:

I think the layering of the elements works so well and the predominantly white daisies balance the bold gingham well I think. The Cheerful Daisies bundle is such a great set and this is a perfect time for me to remind you that it is the featured set in my current tutorial bundle with the lovely Jan Clothier - if you place an order with me for the Cheerful Daisies bundle (or if you have it, feel free to substitute with product of equal value) this month, you will receive the tutorial, along with access to our exclusive Facebook group, for free.

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; apologies for my post going live later than intended today. I am away from home and was temporarily without internet, but we are all sorted now so normal service should be resumed from this point forward! I'll be back soon with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

CHEERFUL DAISIES DIES (32.00)	TINSEL GEMS FOUR-PACK (7.50)	GLORIOUS GINGHAM 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (10.00)	BERRY BURST A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)	BERRY BURST CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	LOST LAGOON A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)
BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (10.00)	BUBBLE BATH CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	STYLISH SHAPES DIES (28.00)	VELLUM A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)	BAKER'S TWINE ESSENTIALS PACK (10.25)	SENDING DIES (ENGLISH) (31.00)
SENDING SMILES PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (21.00)

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

Having used my Oceanfront stamp set a few times recently, I decided to go with a card that was inspired by the fun inflatables and beach toys on our challenge badge this week and decided to make a card featuring that sweet silly goose from the stamp set of the same name floating on the waves in her inflatable rubber ring with her amphibian friend - take a look:

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

I stamped my image and sentiment in Tuxedo Black ink and coloured it with my Stampin' Blends in the Just Add Ink challenge colours (I still have Coastal Cabana markers from when we had Blendabilities markers) and the added it to a Lemon Lolly card base. I used the Sketch Saturday layout for my card, using one of the Scalloped Contour Dies to represent the stripes of the sketch and create a sea of waves. I added a touch of clear Wink of Stella to the edge of the waves and some retired ribbon with a bow to complete my card. How cute is that silly goose?

That's all there is to it! A sweet card to send a gaggle of good wishes to someone special in some summery, fresh colours. So what do trips to the beach mean to you? Is it sandcastles, shell collecting or sun, sea, sand and relaxation? Why not make a card with a beach theme and share it with us over at The Paper Players this week?

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 taking it easy today as the oldest of the James Juniors left for Geneva on a school trip in the early hours of the morning, so we are all feeling slightly jaded. I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

SILLY GOOSE PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (24.00)	SCALLOPED CONTOURS DIES (33.00)	LEMON LOLLY A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)	COASTAL CABANA A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)	BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (10.00)	TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (6.25)
PRETTY PEACOCK STAMPIN’ BLENDS COMBO PACK (9.50)	LEMON LOLLY STAMPIN’ BLENDS COMBO PACK (9.50)	STAMPIN' BLENDS COLOR LIFTER (4.75)	SMOKY SLATE STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (9.50)	POOL PARTY STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (9.50)

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

I decided to share another of the fun animals from the Zoo Crew designer paper on my card this week; this time it's the turn of the ballet-dancing hippo for a sweet birthday card for a little girl - take a look:

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

I used a base layered with some retired Country Floral Lane designer paper which picked up on the Petal Pink of the hippo's tutu, then inspired by the challenge over at SUO Challenges I decided I would delve into my ribbon stash and use the verticals for a double trim of beautiful Pool Party satin ribbon (the one I've used is retired but I've linked to a current equivalent below) and tied with a statement bow. I coloured my hippo with Smoky Slate Stampin' Blends then fussy cut her and added her to my card:

A diecut sentiment from the 'Charming Sentiments' stamp set completes my card. I just love this Zoo Crew paper for fussy cutting - you can create so many different cards with the characters featured.

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's forecast to be super hot here in the UK today, so I will be taking it easy I think! I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

ZOO CREW 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (9.98)	CHARMING SENTIMENTS PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (22.00)	SENTIMENT SILHOUETTES DIES (33.00)	POOL PARTY 3/8" (1 CM) GROSGRAIN RIBBON (7.50)	PETAL PINK A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)	SMOKY SLATE A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)
SMOKY SLATE STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (9.50)