It's Sunday and time for a new challenge over at The Paper Players! It's the turn of our very own Birthday Girl, the lovely Jaydee, to host our challenge this week and she has a fun clean and simple theme for you to play along with:

So along with Jaydee's birthday - happy birthday wishes to you Jaydee! - we are also celebrating the arrival of Spring! For my card this week I was inspired to use the cute little chick from the Sale-A-Bration Honeycomb Happiness stamp set, this time in conjunction with the floral spray in the 'Number of Years' stamp set. I used this week's layout over at Freshly Made Sketches for my card - take a look:

Key points to note about today's card:

More than a number - The 'Number of Years' stamp set is big on numbers, but it also has this lovely floral spray which can be used in conjunction with the other stamps in the set or for something totally different, as I've done here. The watercolour-effect stamp was the perfect pairing for my no-line watercoloured chick today. I stamped it twice, masking my chick once so that some of the stems appeared behind for depth of field, then went over the top with my aquapainter to further enhance to watercoloured effect. 

No-line watercolouring - I've used this technique with this same little chick previously (you can see that card here). Today I wanted to use soft pastels and delicate colouring to have him peeking out of the spring flowers, so no-line watercolouring was the perfect solution. I stamped him in Sahara Sand and coloured him in So Saffron and Daffodil Delight with my aquapainter to give him a realistic finish.

Sketches are open to interpretation - Kim's sketch is great but I needed my chick to be grounded and not floating in mid-air, so I rotated the sketch through 180 degrees (this is allowed!) I used the floral spray to give the circular shape within the sketch without adding another layer to my card and keep it looking 'clean and simple'.

A bold Hello - With such delicate watercoloured pastels, I decided to stamp my sentiment in Versamark on Basic Black and heat emboss in white to give my sentiment some prominence. I then punched this out with my Word Window Punch. A nice contrast I think to the softness of the rest of my card.

I'm also linking up my card today with the challenge over at Addicted to CAS, where the current theme is 'delicate' and SUO Challenges where the theme is 'welcome Spring'.

Here's today's visual summary of the key products used on today's card for easy reference:

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

I look forward to seeing what you create with this week's clean and simple theme. We have a jam-packed day of sport today: hockey and basketball training, followed by a hockey tournament, lunch and then both James Juniors are playing in a basketball match. I'm thinking we need to start the day with at least two Weetabix each to get us through to dinner!!

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Number Of Years Photopolymer Stamp Set	Honeycomb Happiness Wood-Mount Stamp Set	Aqua Painters	Watercolor Paper	Sahara Sand Classic Stampin' Pad
So Saffron Classic Stampin' Pad	Daffodil Delight Classic Stampin' Pad	Wisteria Wonder Classic Stampin' Pad	Wild Wasabi Classic Stampin' Pad	Pink Pirouette Classic Stampin' Pad
Pumpkin Pie Classic Stampin' Pad	Basic Black Stampin' Write Marker	Basic Black A4 Cardstock	Embossing Buddy	Versamark Pad
White Stampin' Emboss Powder	Heat Tool (Uk)	Word Window Punch	Wisteria Wonder A4 Cardstock

I've been under the weather this week, but now I'm on the mend I'm catching up with a few things, including this week's new collection of Wednesday Weekly Deals! These offers are valid for one week only. 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 March XDZGYVJC 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:

Embellished Ornaments Clear-Mount Stamp Set

Smoky Slate 5/8" Chevron Ribbon

Merry Moments A4 Cardstock Assortment Pack

Stylish Stripes Textured Impressions Embossing Folder

Rather Christmas-themed this week, if you are minded to get very organised! 

Back later with today's creative project; until then, happy shopping!

Today it's time for a new challenge over at Create With Connie and Mary and this week we have a colour combination for you:

These colours immediately made me think of nature so I decided to use my new 'In The Meadow' stamp set for my card today:

I stamped my images in Archival Black ink and used my aquapainter and inks to colour them in before cutting out with my Circles Framelits. My Soft Suede card base is square and I layered this with a mat of Mossy Meadow and a piece of striped paper from the English Garden designer series paper pack that has a lovely watercoloured feel. I added a strip of Mossy Meadow and before I added a few twists of linen thread and a bow, decided to add a strip of wide Watermelon Wonder ribbon on something of a whim. The only other place I used this one of the challenge colours was on the butterflies next to my sentiment, so thought I would try a bold injection of colour; I liked it, so I kept it! This stamp set is not the type I am normally drawn to, but having seen some beautiful scenes created with it I decided I had to have it and I love the creative possibilities it offers.

Here's today's visual summary of the key products used to create today's card for easy reference:

Do visit the other Design Team members to see what they did with this week's colours; there's lots of inspiration over on their blogs too!

I have another busy day in store today (no rest for the wicked and all that!)

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

I'm back! No blog post from me yesterday I'm afraid: I have been battling a dreadful cold this week and with my busy days a few early nights have been in order. Today I'm back with another of my technique class cards using all three products from the Botanical Garden bundle, this time a clean and simple thank you card. I made this card early last week before last week's sketch over at Freshly Made Sketches was published, so I couldn't quite believe it when I saw both the sketch and Amy o'Neill's FMS Design Team card, that bears many similarities to mine - spooky how that happens sometimes! Here is the card I designed for my class:

This card is all about the vine; it can be used in lots of different ways (here's another example on an earlier card here) but one thing is for sure, it makes such a beautiful edging for a card. On this card it is cut into the front piece of my extra thick Whisper White card base and a piece of Botanical Gardens Designer Series Paper adhered to the back panel beneath it to show through when closed. The focal point of my card is another flower cut using my Big Shot and the Botanical Gardens framelits, but the other things that make this card special are:

Suite Sayings Sentiment - One of my favourite current sentiment sets, Suite Sayings, has a wide variety of sayings and this one is perfect for a thank you 'just because'.

Awesomely Artistic Grunge - I added a little back splatter using the grunge stamp in the Awesomely Artistic set to add a little more colour and soften my card, without obscuring too much of the all important 'white space' that adds so much to a truly CAS card.

A Trio of Embellishments - I actually managed to use three separate embellishments to my card: a White Perfect Accent for my flower middle (coloured black with my Sharpie), some strands of looped gold twine and a vellum leaf. Each of them adding a subtle detail without overwhelming.

Here's visual summary of key products used to make today's card for easy reference:

I hope you like today's card. I'll be back tomorrow with a card for this week's new challenge over at Create With Connie and Mary. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Botanical Blooms Photopolymer Bundle	Suite Sayings Clear-Mount Stamp Set	Botanical Gardens Cardstock Pack	Big Shot	Precision Base Plate
Big Shot Die Brush	White Perfect Accents	Basic Black Archival Stampin’ Pad	Cajun Craze Classic Stampin' Pad	Mossy Meadow Classic Stampin' Pad
Mint Macaron Classic Stampin' Pad	Whisper White A4 Thick Cardstock	Gold Metallic Thread	Vellum A4 Cardstock	Awesomely Artistic Clear-Mount Stamp Set

Good evening lovely readers! I have had a busy day with the second of this month's technique classes this morning and a Spring concert for one of the James Juniors this afternoon. Today I'm sharing a card I made for this week's challenge over at TGIF Challenges that was also one of the cards I made with the ladies in my card class this morning. I haven't played along with the TGIF team for a while and I couldn't resist this week's sketch:

My card features all of the products in the Botanical Gardens bundle offer (buy all 3 and save 15%) - Botanical Gardens Designer Series Paper, Botanical Blooms stamp set and Botanical Builder Framelits Dies - and features a fun technique. Here is my card:

Today's card is a celebration of the Botanical Gardens product suite, but there are three things that really make it special:

Customised Designer Series Paper - The paper I used for the background on my card is one of a number of patterns in the Botanical Gardens Designer Series paper pack that can be customised using the Botanical Blooms stamp set. Many of the leaves and flowers can be stamped with veins and stamens in the colours of your choice to create a variety of different looks. I had great fun adding detail to my background and this best thing is, this can be different every time. 

Fuss-free Flowers - I just love the Botanical Builder Framelits Dies for limitless floral creative possibilities, yet the two things that really make these fuss-free can't even be seen on this card: the Big Shot Die Brush and the Big Shot Precision Base Plate. Both perfect for working with intricate dies, they really do enable these flowers to pop out easily, no wax paper required. You may think you don't need these items, however whilst you could use a standard or magnetic platform, you will definitely get better results using these tools. My customers keep telling me this too, so impressed are they with the results.

A Free Sentiment - The sentiment on my card is from the Sale-A-Bration set 'Botanicals For You'. This stamp set co-ordinates with the other Botanicals products and is available free with a £45 spend before the end of the month. The Botanical Gardens bundle costs £46.75, so if you buy the bundle, you can get this set for free too - bargain!

Here is today's visual summary of the key products used and top tip for easy reference:

I hope you like today's card; I have two more to share this week using this product suite that were also makes in my technique class today, so stay tuned for those. Back tomorrow with another project; until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

Botanical Blooms Photopolymer Bundle	Botanical Gardens Cardstock Pack	Mint Macaron A4 Cardstock	Botanicals For You Wood-Mount Stamp Set	Big Shot
Precision Base Plate	Big Shot Die Brush	Whisper White A4 Cardstock	White Perfect Accents	Basic Black Archival Stampin’ Pad
2-1/2" Circle Punch	Basic Black A4 Cardstock	Rhinestone Basic Jewels	Cajun Craze Classic Stampin' Pad	Hello Honey Classic Stampin' Pad
Mossy Meadow Classic Stampin' Pad

It's Sunday and time for a new challenge over at The Paper Players! It's the turn of our esteemed leader the amazing Nance to host our challenge this week and she has a fun colour scheme for you to play along with:

For my card this week I was inspired to use my Picture perfect stamp set for the first time; I've seen so many brightly coloured hummingbirds with this set, I thought these colours would be perfect to create one of my very own. Take a look:

Here are the key features of today's card:

Picture Perfect Hummingbird - 'Picture Perfect' is a multi-step image stamp set, with each of the stamps having two, three or four layers. The hummingbird comes in four pieces, so in order to get four layers with only three colours, I stamped my first and third layers in Bermuda Bay, having stamped off the first one so that it was lighter in colour. I stamped the second stamp in Calypso Coral and the fourth and final one in Memento Black. Whilst it sounds complicated, this set is made from photopolymer which makes lining up the images really straightforward. 

Partial Die Cutting using Circle Framelits - I decided upon a rather unusual layout for my card today, using a base of Calypso Coral with the top part of the front cut away on the diagonal. I stamped my bird onto a piece of Whisper White and having fussy cut his wing tip by hand, I then cut a partial circle up to the diagonal before adhering behind so that it aligned with my cut away circle on my card base. Circle Framelits are invaluable for this kind of partial diecutting, as you simply roll through the Bid Shot to the desired point without cutting the whole way through.

Color Me Irresistible Specialty Designer Series Paper - I used this black pre-embossed paper last week on this card and decided it was just the thing to add a block of colour to the background of my card today too. The subtle stripes align perfectly to the diagonal line of my card and add interest without detracting from the bird.

Lastly, I stamped my sentiment in Versamark and heat embossed it in black and added a trio of White Perfect Accents, coloured black using a Sharpie, for a little extra shine. I spent ages trying to work out what to do with these colours, but once I'd decided on using this stamp set, it all came together seamlessly. Love it when that happens!

Here's today's visual summary of the key things needed to make today's card for easy reference:

Remember you can also find all of my 'Tip and Techniques' summaries on my Pinterest page here.

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

I look forward to seeing what you create with our colour palette this week. We are off to basketball today and hockey today, Rebecca has a birthday party to attend to and I have lots of preparation for this week's classes to be getting on with, so it's going to be a busy one!

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

Picture Perfect Photopolymer Stamp Set	Circles Collection Framelits Dies	Big Shot	Color Me Irresistible Specialty Designer Series Paper	Calypso Coral Classic Stampin' Pad
Calypso Coral A4 Cardstock	Whisper White A4 Cardstock	Bermuda Bay Classic Stampin' Pad	Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad	Embossing Buddy
Versamark Pad	Black Stampin' Emboss Powder	White Perfect Accents	Punch Corner Project Life

A busy day so a late post from me today with a card for this week's Retrosketches challenge:

I went with brights and lemons today using my new 'Apple Of My Eye' stamp set and a sentiment with a twist:

This card is all about the lemons! Even with this relatively clean and simple design, they are three key features of today's citrus-themed card:

Apple of My Eye Stamp Set - The focal point lemon and the sentiment on today's card are from this stamp set, which also contains cherries, pears and apples of course. A fun set that will be useful, amongst other things, for teacher's thank you's too. Today's sentiment is one of three in the set and probably my favourite. I know it doesn't totally fit with lemons, but 'You're just the most sour' so doesn't have the same ring to it! This stamp can also be punched out with a 1 3/4" Circle Punch, so easy-peasy - no fussy cutting required.

Have a Cuppa Designer Series Paper Stack - This paper stack has some great cup and teapot designs, but there are also some great generic patterns too. I used three different patterns of paper on my card, all featuring lemons or leaves - great for citrus tea, but also perfect just for lemons! This sketch layout is also perfect for using up those scraps of designer paper that are left over from other projects. 

A Trio of Embellishments - There are also a number of embellishments that I added to this card to make it complete: some Crushed Curry It's My Party Enamel Dots, a small Classy Designer Button tied with a piece of Crushed Curry baker's twine (if you look up close it is ridged just like the segments of the lemon too!) and the flesh of the lemon has been liberally painted with Wink of Stella to add a subtle touch of citrus sparkle!

Here's today's visual summary of the key things needed to make today's card for easy reference:

Yellow is one of my most favourite colours and I just love this bright and lemony monochromatic card - so fresh!

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Apple Of My Eye Photopolymer Stamp Set	Have A Cuppa Designer Series Paper Stack	Clear Wink Of Stella Glitter Brush	Whisper White A4 Cardstock	1-3/4" Circle Punch
It's My Party Enamel Dots	Classy Designer Buttons	Crushed Curry Baker's Twine	Crushed Curry Classic Stampin' Pad	Crushed Curry A4 Cardstock
Daffodil Delight A4 Cardstock

Today it's time for a new challenge over at Create With Connie and Mary and this week we have a great sketch for you:

My card today started with the sentiment on the sketch, which immediately reminded me of the thank you sentiment in the 'Fabulous Four' stamp set. I decided to get an early start on my end of school year thank you cards - a long way off yet, but I will need lots of them this year so no time like the present! Here's my card:

The three key elements of today's card are as follows:

Fabulous Four stamp set - this is a stamp set with four large sentiments, three of which are two-line sentiments like the one on today's card. They are big, bold and fun and perfect if you want to make the sentiment the focal point of your card.

Owl Builder Punch - I haven't made an owl with my Owl Builder Punch for a while so I decided to take the flower element of the sketch and make it a scholarly owl, complete with spectacles, mortar board and shiny apple courtesy of a little Crystal Effects. I coloured him to co-ordinate with my chosen designer series paper - isn't he so cute?!

Schoolhouse Designer Series Paper - I used two of the papers from the Schoolhouse pack for my card today: the alphabet fitted in perfectly with my school theme and the stripes added some additional colour for the bottom portion of the card. I also added a piece of co-ordinating Tangelo Twist In-Colour Washi Tape beneath the sentiment as per the sketch; a small touch, but it does nicely emphasise the positioning of the owl.

Here's today's visual summary for easy reference:

Do visit the other Design Team members to see how they interpreted this week's sketch; there's lots of inspiration over on their blogs too!

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

The week is flying by - Wednesday already! Today I have a great clean and simple card for this week's challenge over at CAS(E) This Sketch that you really could put together in a jiffy. Firstly, here's this week's sketch:

I decided to make a quick Easter card featuring one of my favourite sentiments from the 'Suite Sayings' stamp set and some left over bits and pieces from my Watercolour Wishes card kit - take a look:

Using a piece of Pool Party cardstock for my cardbase, there are three key things that make this card:

Suite Sayings Stamp Set - This is one of those sets that has a sentiment for pretty much any occasion and this Easter one is a favourite of mine. I love the swirly script and the size, which works perfectly inside or on the front of a card.  

Lots of Labels Framelits Dies - I used the largest of the Lots of Labels Framelits Dies, cutting my Whisper White cardstock to just narrower than the die so that I could extend the length of my panel and only cut the framelit shape along one end. This is a useful technique - here's a photo that shows how it should look before you put it through the Big Shot:

Watercolour Wishes Card Kit - This has to be most favourite Stampin' Up! kit of all time - it contains everything you need to make 20 cards; what's more the stamp set, ink spots and acrylic block can all be used to create more projects with your own card bases once you've made up those in the kit. There are lots of spare embellishments too, with banners, flowers, washi tape, sequins and wooden pieces left over - perfect to make the most of today's card.

Here is the visual summary of today's card for reference:

I hope you like today's card - sometimes a quick card is in order and in 'waste not, want not' mode this one was a perfect opportunity to use up the generous leftovers from my kit!

I'm off to my Coffee and Card Drop-in Session this morning at Bell of Northampton - you can read all about that here - and am going to watch one of my juniors play in a netball match this afternoon. Back tomorrow with my card for this week's challenge over at Create With Connie and Mary where we have a fun sketch in store for you. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Suite Sayings Wood-Mount Stamp Set

Watercolor Wishes Card Kit

Lots Of Labels Framelits Dies

Pool Party A4 Cardstock

Whisper White A4 Cardstock

It's Wednesday and you know what that means: a new collection of Wednesday Weekly Deals! These offers are valid for one week only. 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 March XDZGYVJC 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:

Be The Star Clear-Mount Stamp Set

Pretty Petals Designer Series Paper Stack

Cherry On Top Cotton Paper Assortment

Silver 5/8" Satin Ribbon

Back later with today's creative project; until then, happy shopping!