Wanted to Say Feel Better Soon CCS 518

by Joanne James15. August 2023 12:00

It's Tuesday and time for a new challenge over at CAS Colours & SketchesThis week's challenge is a sketch challenge and Sue has asked that we contain our design to one vertical half of our card:

    

Feel free to flip or rotate the sketch when making your card. 

For my card today I decided to use a few more of the fruity Pink Fresh Studio washi diecuts that my friend Elizabeth shared with me and pair them with a gold foil diecut sentiment cut using the Wanted To Say Dies for a clean and simple get well soon card:

 

The gold detailing on the washi compliments the gold foil and since grapes are the traditional food gift when visiting someone who is under the weather these, along with the figs, were just right. I added a few glittery gold enamel dots to complete my card:

Clean and simple - I'm also linking up over at Just Add Ink where that just so happens to be their theme 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 'How To' summaries on my 'How To - Tips and Techniques' Pinterest board in case you've missed any. 

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! color 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'!

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Table built using Product Table Builder by The Crafty Owl - Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator.

Textured Floral Birthday Blooms For PP653

by Joanne James13. August 2023 08:00

Today it's Sunday and time for this week's new challenge over at The Paper Players! It's the turn of the fabulous 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:

Here's a quick recap of our challenge rules:
 
1.  Create a new paper project
2.  Upload your creation to your blog with a link back to us and provide a direct link to the post featuring your challenge submission.
3.  Please link your card to no more than four challenges, TOTAL.
4.  Have FUN!

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: 

Table built using Product Table Builder by The Crafty Owl - Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator.

Crushed Curry Cheerful Daisies For AYSI 305

by Joanne James11. August 2023 12:00

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

       

I love yellow, am a big fan of designer paper and make more thank you cards than any other type of card so I created my recipe with these things in mind and can't wait to see what you come up with! I decided to use the sketch over at Try Stamping On Tuesday for my layout and am featuring spots alongside my daisy as my entry for the current theme over at The Flower Challenge - take a look:

 

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

I loved the TSOT layout this week and whilst I didn't go with the slimline option (I've been making a lot of those lately), I think it works as a standard card front too. Since the board contained so many of my favourite things, I thought I would challenge myself to use Crushed Curry as my main yellow; of all the yellows, this is probably the one I use the least and rarely use it outside of autumn/fall. I decided to keep my card monochromatic and use only shades of this colour. I used some of the Inked Botanicals designer series paper that features a spot design for the rear circle shape, then substituted the uppermost circle with a daisy stamped and diecut with the Cheerful Daisies bundle. After inking my flower petals, I used a blending brush on my stamp to remove some of the ink and soften the resulting stamped petals; you can see the contrast to the flower centre, which was stamped at full strength. I then used the same blending brush to add that excess ink to my mat layer behind the daisy, to allow my Very Vanilla leaves to standout from the base:

I stamped my sentiment in Early Espresso as it was less harsh than black and added a trio of (retired) enamel dots to complete my card. So what do you think? Is Crushed Curry a favourite yellow of yours or do you prefer others in the collection? I still prefer Lemon Lolly and Daffodil Delight, but at the same time I love how this card turned out.

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.

Enjoy your day; we have birthday celebrations in the James household today so whilst the James Juniors are spending the morning paintballing with friends, I am baking a special birthday cake to enjoy at the celebrations later. I'll be back soon with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Table built using Product Table Builder by The Crafty Owl - Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator.

Holy Guacamole It's A Taco Fiesta Birthday

by Joanne James10. August 2023 19:00

Tomorrow is the 16th birthday for the youngest of the James Juniors, so I thought I'd squeak in a quick post to share one of the cards I made to celebrate his big day! I used the sketch over at Sketch Saturday (but had difficulty linking up so am not playing along) and this week's Color Throwdown colours:

   

I've had the 'Taco Fiesta' stampset for ages and until now it's sat uninked on the shelf. t was perfect with these colours and the fun circular sketch layout - take a look:

 

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

I did some basic stamping on my base mat that followed the outer contours of the circles, then added some tone-on-tone stamping to each of the circles with some of the stamps in the set. I then topped each of the circles with a larger image that I stamped on white and coloured them with my Stampin' Blends. You can see the detail a little more closely below:

A simple twine bow, heat embossed sentiment and trio of mat dots complete my 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 day and I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Table built using Product Table Builder by The Crafty Owl - Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator.

Ice Cream Sweet Birthday Wishes PP652

by Joanne James6. August 2023 08:00

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:

Here's a quick recap of our challenge rules:
 
1.  Create a new paper project
2.  Upload your creation to your blog with a link back to us and provide a direct link to the post featuring your challenge submission.
3.  Please link your card to no more than four challenges, TOTAL.
4.  Have FUN!

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: 

Table built using Product Table Builder by The Crafty Owl - Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator.

A Zoo Crew Reindeer For A Clean And Simple Christmas Card

by Joanne James4. August 2023 09:00

This is my second post of the day as today I'm guesting over at CAS on Friday further to my recent win (here's the link to my winning card if you missed it!) The theme of the new challenge is 'Holiday'. I initially thought about sunny beaches and the sea, but then realised that whilst us Brits tend to use the word 'holiday' as an alternative to 'vacation', in other countries, particularly the USA, the word 'holiday' is often used in connection with the festive season so yes, you've guessed it - I have another Christmas card for you! Take a look:

 

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

Do you recognise this ballet dancing reindeer? She is actually one of the characters on the Zoo Crew designer paper! I've shared cards made with other animals fussy cut from this paper before; I just added a hint of colour to her antlers and a pop of festive red and a sparkly rhinestones to the flower on her skirt, added a couple of pieces of retired festive paper from my scrap box behind and finished with a stamped Christmas sentiment from the current 'Ringed With Nature' stamp set:

 

And that's all there is to it! There are a few sets in the annual catalogue that are Christmas-themed or are not designed as such but can be used to make cards for the holiday season. So if you want to get started early on your Christmas crafting, go ahead and take a look. You could also treat yourself to a Christmas card kit as they are discounted with up to 30% this month or even sign up to be a Stampin' Up! demonstrator - you would then benefit from the perk of being able to order items from the mini catalogue right away, a whole month ahead of customers - yay!

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. 

Be sure to check out the projects made by the CAS On Friday designers - I know they will have some fabulous inspiration to share.

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

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Table built using Product Table Builder by The Crafty Owl - Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator.

Black and White Bethlehem for FF0140

by Joanne James4. August 2023 09:00

Today I have my card for the new challenge over at Festive Friday Card Making and Paper Crafting Challenge

    

The challenge that we are celebrating this week is 'World Photography Day' which is on 19th August. Remember the fun thing is that at Festive Friday you do not need to actually celebrate the occasion; your goal is to simply use three or more items from the inspiration list on your project. We have a number of keen photographers in our house, but I chose to go in a totally different direction today. I used black, white, rhinestones and landscape/cityscape from the inspo list and this is what I came up with:

 

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

I used some retired Peaceful Place starry night sky paper and my retired Bethlehem Edgelits to create a monochrome Christmas card that is something of a CASE of a previous card I made using this set (you can see that card here), adding my cityscape diecuts with dimensionals for a little extra lift. I heat embossed my 'O Holy Night' sentiment from the retired stamp set 'Illuminated Christmas' in white on black, and highlighted the embossed stars on the designer paper with a single rhinestone - the star of Bethlehem, perhaps?

 

I am linking today's card up with the team over at Time Out who are asking us to create monochrome cards for their current challenge; there is something so elegant about a single colour scheme, for sure.

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 did place a pre-order for Christmas goodies from the new mini catalogue yesterday, so will have some lovely new things to share with you in the coming weeks, but it has been fun to give some love to favourite sets of old this week and of course it's always good to use up retired designer series paper!

How does our board inspire you? I can’t wait to see what YOU create! For more inspiration, be sure to visit the rest of the Festive Friday Card Making and Paper Crafting Challenge Design team:

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

 

Gorgeously Made Masked Friendship Card TTT 220

by Joanne James3. August 2023 17:00

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

    

I went down the final column with ink blending/blues and greens/gems and had a go at creating a masked and blended background to highlight the foliage stamps in the Gorgeously Made bundle - take a look:

 

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

I've been working a lot with the Gorgeously Made bundle lately as I've been working through ideas to include in this month's Gorgeously Made Create With Joanne and Jan Tutorial Bundle and this is one the ideas that I was experimenting with that didn't make it into the tutorial itself. I was inspired by the sketch over at Sunday Stamps and whilst ordinarily I would have gone with a large diecut sentiment, I decided to turn the sketch on its head and go for something vertical that used one of the small sentiments in the set, but in a way that highlighted it in an unusual way. When using a bundle for the first time, I like to consider less obvious ways to use it and this card includes one of those. Instead of adding the sentiment to my card by stamping it onto white cardstock, diecutting and adding with dimensionals, I created four label pieces from diecut masking paper and positioned these down the middle of my white panel. I then blended my trio of blue and green inks and stamped my foliage on top of my blended background, going off the edge and over the masked areas - I recommend you use your Stamparatus for this so that you get a good strong black image. When complete, I removed the masking paper labels to leave four white apertures that I could then stamp my sentiment into:

I added a sprinkling of coloured gems that picked up the colours of my blended background, but if you don't have coloured gems that match you chosen background colours, you can custom colour clear rhinestones with Stampin' Blends in corresponding colours. So what do you think of today's card? This is a good way of minimising layers and a neat way to use label dies in a creative way and this style of card would work in other colourways too.

 

Remember if you would like more ideas of ways to use the Gorgeously Made bundle, if you purchase the bundle from either myself if you're in the UK and Europe (or Jan if you're based in New Zealand) during either August or September, you will receive a copy of our tutorial bundle with instructions for four projects and access to our exclusive customer Facebook Group - for more details read about it in yesterday'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. 

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 two projects; in addition to my fortnightly Festive Friday post, I am also the Guest Designer over at CAS On Friday. Until then, happy stampin'!

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

Table built using Product Table Builder by The Crafty Owl - Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator.

Create With Joanne and Jan - New Tutorial Bundle

by Joanne James2. August 2023 09:00

News of the August Stampin' Up! Kits Sale yesterday so I saved this post until today! It's August and time for a new Create with Joanne and Jan tutorial bundle!

My friend and former Stampin' Up! Artisan Designer Jan Clothier, aka Thinking Stamping, and I are working together to reward our customers with some extra special perks. Every two months, Jan and I will be putting together a set of four tutorials featuring a bundle or suite. Simply purchase the suite or bundle from us and we’ll email you the tutorials in PDF format for you to make. If you already have the suite or bundle, simply purchase something else of equivalent value and we’ll email the tutorial package to you.

The four tutorials (two from each of us) will really show you different ways to make the most of your purchase because you’ll get the benefit of both our ways of thinking and both our styles. There will be a range of project levels, from casual to avid and you won’t find these projects in any of our other social media platforms. We’ve designed them just for our customers. In addition to the tutorials, you’ll also be offered access to an exclusive private Facebook Group where you’ll be able to share your projects, and ask us questions. You’ll also find little extras there from us like extra projects, tips or even the occasional video or Facebook Live. You just never know!

So there you have it. Two great reasons to shop with us: a package of four exclusive designs AND access to a private Facebook Group so you can pick our brains and share your work with us.

You can shop with me if you live in the UK and Europe

You can shop with Jan if you live in New Zealand.

For August-September, we are featuring the Gorgeously Made bundle from the 2023-2024 Annual Catalogue. The Masterfully Made Suite Collection features the Gorgeously Made stamp set and die bundle and includes beautiful designer series papers featuring mixed media designs with handpainted and hand-torn designs. If you would like to receive this tutorial, you can place your online order with me by clicking on the direct product links for the bundle and any other products in the suite below:

Table built using Product Table Builder by The Crafty Owl - Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator.
 

Remember to add the current hostess code 2A6EXGJ4 to your order. 

Watch out for a new tutorial package for October-November at the end of September.

Up to 30% Off Stampin' Up! Kits During August

by Joanne James1. August 2023 14:00

You all know what a fan I am of Stampin' Up!'s kits - they make for a perfect crafty evening in with friends, whether you are a seasoned crafter or have never crafted before and would like to try something new. Kits are fun, quick and easy and all-inclusive so there's nothing to buy and nothing to store afterwards and with so many different styles and types, there's something for everyone. During August you can save up to 30% on all kits - what could be better?! You don't need a code - all kits have already been discounted in the online store - links to each of those currently available are below; I'll be sharing details on some of my favourites on social media during this month, but I just want to draw your attention to some recent new additions, including the Festive Tags kit that launches today:

If you would like to start crafting handmade creations for Christmas and New Year, the Festive Tags Kit has everything you need to create 15 festive gift tags in less than an hour - no stamping required! There are several other Christmas card and tag kits in the online store too, so definitely worth a look.

Another recently launched stamping kit is the Boho Beach kit:

This all-inclusive kit comes with everything you need to make eight beautiful beach-inspired cards. Send a friendly note to the people you love and don’t miss the acrylic-poured paint art style used in this kit for a dazzling marbled colour effect! It’s time to take a well-deserved break, sit back, and take friends and family to the beach from the comfort of your home!

Finally the Blossom Wishes Kit:

Celebrate your friends with special slimline cards from the Blossom Wishes Kit! With vellum blossoms and foiled details, you can quickly put together a fun paper craft! This kit also comes with pre-cut sentiments in Dutch, English, French, and German, so you can send a card and say hello to friends near and far.

Kits make great gifts too - you can make up the projects and then give them away for someone else to use or give them an unopened kit to bring them crafting pleasure of their own and there are some great kits for children, including the fun Love This Memory Notebook - this could be a fun way to record and document vacation activities:

To get your hands on a discounted kit, you can either get in touch to place your order or alternatively visit my online store. Or if you would like to arrange a 'kit together' event with friends for a fun evening out, then do get in touch!

As with all kits, they are available whilst stocks last; the online store will show a full range of what is currently available; to purchase, simply click on the links below. Happy shopping!

 

Table built using Product Table Builder by The Crafty Owl - Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator.

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About Me

Hi I'm Joanne and live in Northampton and when I'm not looking after my husband and two beautiful children, am an avid crafter with a passion for all things Stampin' Up!

I must confess that I have never been a big rubber stamper - until I discovered Stampin' Up! that is. I love the fact that I can get such great results with co-ordinating stamps, inks, papers and punches - the possibilities are endless! Join me on my stamping journey as I share the things I love and be inspired to create amazing things yourself!

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This is my personal blog and is not endorsed by Stampin’ Up! I hope you find it a plentiful source of ideas and personal inspiration but please don't copy my designs for contest submission or use for classes, publication or sale without express permission.