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 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'!

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:

RINGED WITH NATURE PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (22.00)	ZOO CREW 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (11.75)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (8.50)	TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (6.25)	REAL RED STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (9.50)	RHINESTONE BASIC JEWELS (5.75)
OLD OLIVE A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)

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: 

GORGEOUSLY MADE BUNDLE (ENGLISH) (47.50)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (8.50)	BASIC BLACK A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)	TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (6.25)	BLENDING BRUSHES (13.00)	BOHO BLUE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)
AZURE AFTERNOON CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	COASTAL CABANA CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	RHINESTONE BASIC JEWELS (5.75)

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:

GORGEOUSLY MADE BUNDLE (ENGLISH) (47.50)

MASTERFULLY MADE 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (11.75)

ADHESIVE-BACKED SEQUINS TRIO (7.50)

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!

FESTIVE TAGS KIT (11.70)	BOHO BEACH KIT (ENGLISH) (18.90)	CONFETTI BIRTHDAY KIT (ENGLISH) (19.80)	FOREVER FRIENDS KIT (ENGLISH) (18.00)	COLORFUL KALEIDOSCOPE KIT (ENGLISH) (19.80)	LOVE TREATS KIT (ENGLISH) (15.40)
TIMELESS GREETINGS KIT (ENGLISH) (17.60)	CHRISTMAS GIFTING KIT (ENGLISH) (16.80)	COZY & BRIGHT KIT (ENGLISH) (17.60)	LOVE THIS MEMORY NOTEBOOK KIT (ENGLISH) (16.80)	THE BEST REMEDY KIT (ENGLISH) (17.60)	A MILLION THANKS KIT (ENGLISH) (16.80)
KINDNESS CARDS KIT (ENGLISH) (15.40)	ROBOT BUDDIES KIDS CARD KIT (ENGLISH) (15.40)	LIGHT THE CANDLES CARD KIT (ENGLISH) (18.90)	LOVE, SANTA TAG KIT (ENGLISH) (14.70)	CHRISTMAS WHIMSY CARD KIT (ENGLISH) (14.70)	SENTIMENTAL ROSE CARD KIT (ENGLISH) (18.90)
A LITTLE SMILE CARD KIT (ENGLISH) (14.00)	YOU ARE MY ANCHOR CARD KIT (ENGLISH) (14.00)	BLOSSOM WISHES KIT (11.70)	WREATH OF BLOOMS KIT (11.70)	SAYING THANKS KIT (11.70)	BIRTHDAY CARD ORGANIZER KIT (19.20)
CELEBRATE TODAY MAGNET BOARD KIT (16.80)	PETAL NOTES CARD KIT (9.10)	NOTES OF CHEER CARD KIT (11.70)	KERCHIEF CARD KIT (9.10)	PRECIOUS PARCEL CARD KIT (9.10)

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

For my card today I chose to make a clean and simple thank you card using the Gorgeously Made bundle:

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

The stamps in the Gorgeously Made stamp set are perfect for loose, collage-style stamping so I took three different ones including my sentiment and inked each in one of the challenge colours, then overlaid my stamped foliage with a pointed diecut one in Cajun Craze:

I used Very Vanilla for my card base as it seemed to compliment this trio of warm, naturalistic colours. And that's all there is to it - a quick and easy thank you 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. 

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:

GORGEOUSLY MADE BUNDLE (ENGLISH) (47.50)

CAJUN CRAZE A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)

CAJUN CRAZE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)

PECAN PIE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)

WILD WHEAT CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)

VERY VANILLA A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (8.50)

Happy Monday everyone! It's grey and miserable here in the UK today but I'm not complaining - it gave me time to squeeze in an entry to this week's Freshly Made Sketches where I couldn't resist this fab sketch by Judy:

A split panel with nothing below the line - so many possibilities! I've missed playing along with these ladies whilst I've been on vacation and was excited by this week's layout as I knew exactly where I was headed - take a look:

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

A couple of my Paper Players teamies have been making Christmas cards in earnest and I was beginning to get itchy feet for the festive season, so this sketch was a good opportunity to remedy that. I am currently planning my preorder for the new mini catalogue that features Stampin' Up!'s new Christmas range, so for today's card I delved into my retired box for an old favourite, the Sweetest Borders Dies, and chose the holly one. My colour scheme of Pretty Peacock and Old Olive was inspired by memories of some two-tone ribbon we had in this colour combo ages ago, which I loved. It always struck me that this was an unusual pairing, but one that worked surprisingly well. I cut my holly border just above the half-way line and stamped my sentiment in Pretty Peacock on the Old Oliver panel, before adding a selection of pearl berries:

I used standard iridescent pearls, with the exception of the extra large ones that are now sadly retired. Whilst we are perhaps more accustomed to red berries with holly, some varieties do have white berries and I think these ones make an elegant statement on my otherwise clean card. Yay - a card for this year's Christmas card stash - complete!

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. 

Final reminder that as today is the last day in July, it's your final opportunity to take advantage of the current Bonus Days promotion. Enjoy the rest of your day and I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

PRETTY PEACOCK A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)

PRETTY PEACOCK CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)

OLD OLIVE A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)

IRIDESCENT PEARL BASIC JEWELS (7.00)

Today it's Sunday and time for this week's new challenge over at The Paper Players! It's the turn of the fabulous 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 I'm sharing my design team card for our new challenge over at As you See It where it's time for a seasonal 'fill in the blank' challenge chosen by the lovely Jane:

There's so much to love about summer: vacations, an abundance of home grown vegetables, trips to the beach, longer days ... but for me the best thing of all about summer is an abundance of sunshine! I don't need the heat but I definitely welcome the brightness that the extra sunshine brings; it lifts my mood and I am so much more productive too. So my clean and simple card today focuses on sunshine and I decided to CASE the designer, Susan Wong, over at Global Design Project too - take a look:

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

Copy and Selectively Edit - I used the same layout as Susan's card, the inked ombre effect and a banner tag sentiment details, but no nighttime camping scene for me! I masked a circle on my white cardbase and stamped the 'Rays of Light' stamp inside it, using Daffodil Delight, Pumpkin Pie and Calypso Coral inks and building the colour from the centre of the sunshine outwards. I added a couple of diecut clouds and added my sentiment to a yellow banner tag, as my sun was very hot and orange in colour and I wanted to bring out more yellow. I tied my tag with gold twine and added a trio of (retired) gold glimmer enamel dots to complete my card:

I'm also linking today's card up over at CAS on Friday where they currently have a theme of 'summer' too. As an aside, I will be guest designer for them for their next challenge, so you will definitely want to check them out :-) It's actually been quite grey here in the UK this week, so I'm hoping that August will see the return of the summer sunshine that I crave!

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.
• 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 on Sunday with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

RAYS OF LIGHT CLING STAMP SET (17.00)	JUST MY TYPE PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (23.00)	GIVE IT A WHIRL DIES (37.00)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (8.50)	DAFFODIL DELIGHT A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)
TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (6.25)	DAFFODIL DELIGHT CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	PUMPKIN PIE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	CALYPSO CORAL CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	SIMPLY ELEGANT TRIM (7.00)