Everything is happening on the 6th of July! Tomorrow sees the start of a new BONUS DAYS promotion! When you shop between 6 and 31 July and spend £45 you will earn a £4.50 coupon! Make sure you save all your coupons because you can redeem them (and I mean ALL of them) between 1 and 31 August. There’s no limit to how many coupons you can earn!

The infographic below provides a great summary of how Bonus Days work:

Make sure to watch the video below if you're new to this promotion and would like to know more: 

 In addition to Bonus Days, there will be a new collection of Online Exclusive products launched tomorrow too:

You can see some of the new products in the graphic above - the full collection will be online from 11pm tonight in my online store here under 'Online Exclusives'. 

Finally, there is one more important thing happening tomorrow - there will be a Clearance Rack refresh too!

All of that is in addition to my Cheerful Daisies tutorial - if you missed the information about this you can read up on it here.

Lots of reasons to shop in July - remember to add the current hostess code 2A6EXGJ4 to your online orders too for a thank you from me.

Today I'm sharing a card I made using the current sketch over at Sunday Stamps which is a slimline and using a pastel colour palette for the challenge over at Just Us Girls this week:

I'm not usually big on pastels, but I do LOVE the new  Lemon Lolly and Bubble Bath colours, and when I received a crafty gift in the post from a crafty friend I was inspired to create something pretty in pink - take a look:

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

One of my dear friends, Elizabeth Stewart of Paper Sweetness fame, sent me a whole collection of fabulous washi diecuts after I was wowed by a card she made using some, so I couldn't wait to create something with them! Since she is the hostess over at Just Us Girls this week it seemed only fair I showed that I was putting her sweet gift to good use! I paired them with existing bits and pieces from my stash, including a decorative panel cut from the (retired) Slim Card Dies in white layered over a base of Bubble Bath and my favourite shape of the Nested Essential Dies, to which I added a diecut 'celebrate' in gold foil from the Wanted To Say DIes and a gold heat-embossed 'you' from an old set:

An extra sprinkle of gold festive pearls completed my card. I love the pretty pastels in the washi tape and the way the elements 'frame' my label and extend along the slimline. Pretty in pink, 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. 

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

WANTED TO SAY DIES (37.00)	NESTED ESSENTIALS DIES (32.00)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (8.50)	BUBBLE BATH A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)	FESTIVE PEARLS (6.75)	METALLICS EMBOSSING POWDERS (17.00)
VERSAMARK PAD (9.00)

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

For my card today I decided to play along with the challenge over at CAS on Friday where the theme is 'love' and make a super clean and simple card using the 'Just My Type' stamp set:

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

I couldn't resist the 'Just My Type' stamp set when I saw it in the annual catalogue - the cute typewriter, along with heart, flowers and rainbows makes for a fun set that is great for #SimpleStamping cards. I stamped my typewriter and sentiment onto my cardbase, then stamped a little plant that I fussy cut and popped up on a dimensional for a little extra detail:

Just stamps, ink and paper - #SimpleStamping at its best! I love that punny sentiment too - just perfect for a love note to someone special. I'm also linking today's card up over at Less Is More where the current theme is 'anything goes'.

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:

JUST MY TYPE PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (23.00)

MISTY MOONLIGHT CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)

CALYPSO CORAL CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)

SOFT SEA FOAM CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)

TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (6.25)

BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (8.50)

Today I have been in full on craft mode but I'm taking a break from making to share a card that I made for a few challenges using Cecile's layout over at Freshly Made Sketches this week:

Now my regular readers will know how much I admire the lovely Cecile's work and it's always fun to have a go at creating with one of her sketches. I have to say, I've been working on this one on and off for the last week and having binned a few attempts I almost gave up. I so wanted to go with a sailboat, but that did seem too obvious, but using those shapes in a different had me stumped. In the end I decided not to take those triangles literally and focus on creating something clean and simple and this is what I came up with:

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

I thought it was high time I played with a new stamp set that I've had for a little while that had yet to see ink called 'Hey Chuck'. I couldn't resist this stamp set; it co-ordinates with the chicken sets we've had previously, is in a bundle with co-ordinating dies and those chickens are just so comical - so perfect for the current challenge over at Time Out too. Firstly I made a stencil using the sun die, doubling it to make a whole sun and I used this to sponge a Daffodil Delight sun directly onto my card base. I then stamped both my skateboard - the perfect outdoor activity for the challenge over at AAA Cards - and my punny congratulations sentiment (yet another exam congratulations card in the bag and perfect for the current celebrations over at Addicted to CAS) directly onto my cardbase, before stamping my chicken separately and colouring him with various Stampin' Blends markers. I then diecut him and popped him up on dimensionals to complete my card:

What could be funnier than a skateboarding chicken, right?! When we had our first set of chickens, the James Juniors built them their own swing that they suspended from the apple tree in our garden and spent ages trying to get the chickens to use it, but our feathered guests were having none of it! Maybe they should have tried a skateboard ... So not a literal take on Cecile's sketch today, but very much in tune with her clean and simple cardmaking style.

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 for our new challenge over at CAS Colours & Sketches - incidentally with my teamie, Cecile! Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

HEY CHUCK BUNDLE (48.50)	TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (6.25)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (8.50)	DAFFODIL DELIGHT CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	BLENDING BRUSHES (13.00)	REAL RED STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (9.50)
POPPY PARADE STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (9.50)	PUMPKIN PIE STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (9.50)	COPPER CLAY STAMPIN’ BLENDS COMBO PACK (9.50)	CAJUN CRAZE STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (9.50)	CALYPSO CORAL STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (9.50)	PRETTY PEACOCK STAMPIN’ BLENDS COMBO PACK (9.50)
SHADED SPRUCE STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (9.50)	BLUEBERRY BUSHEL STAMPIN’ BLENDS COMBO PACK (9.50)	SMOKY SLATE 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 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)

Hi everyone - as promised I'm here with my second post today and some exciting news! Welcome to Join In with Joanne and Jan!

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.

We’re kicking off with the Cheerful Daisies bundle from the 2023-2024 Annual Catalogue.

The Fresh As A Daisy Suite Collection features the Cheerful Daisies stamp set and die bundle and includes beautiful designer series papers featuring loosely handpainted florals that also feature all of the new 2023-25 in-colours. 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:

CHEERFUL DAISIES BUNDLE (ENGLISH) (50.25)

FRESH AS A DAISY 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (9.98)

ADHESIVE-BACKED SOLID GEMS (7.50)

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

Watch out for a new tutorial package for August-September at the end of July.

It's been a quiet week here on the blog - I have been enjoying some post-exam time with the James Juniors to have some fun and blogging hasn't been high on the agenda - although I do have two posts for you today! First up I'm sharing my design team card for our new challenge over at As You See It where it's time for my favourite, a sketch challenge:

Not only do we have a sketch challenge, this layout, chosen by my friend and teamie Jan, is my all-time favourite 'go to' - if you peruse my blog you will find lots of cards that follow this layout style. What's more, in a complete stroke of fortuitous serendipity, the ladies over at Color Throwdown have one of my all-time favourite colour combos too, so I just knew I would have to combine the two! I used my favourite Gorgeous Grape purple for my card base and decided to go full-on bright florals - take a look:

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

I created an arc of flowers using the Paper Florist Dies, to frame my sentiment from 'Something Fancy'. The Paper Florist Dies are a set of standalone dies easily overlooked - you can find them on page 165 of the annual catalogue and they are showcased on projects on page 33. They make fabulous large flowers that are great for 3D projects, home decor and to decorate gift packaging. I made up a tone of flowers so that I could experiment with the shapes, sizes and flower combinations, but settled on these three for my card:

A trio of enamel dots and a simple happy birthday sentiment inside was all I needed to complete today's card. I just love this card - is it ok to send a card to yourself if you love it so much?!

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 sketch challenge, you are welcome to rotate or flip a sketch. You can replace shapes used such as substituting a circle panel for a square panel. However, we must be able to still see the basis of the original sketch in your finished product.

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

SOMETHING FANCY CLING STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (22.00)	PAPER FLORIST DIES (35.00)	STYLISH SHAPES DIES (28.00)	GORGEOUS GRAPE A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)	HIGHLAND HEATHER A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)	GORGEOUS GRAPE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)
MELON MAMBO A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)	BUBBLE BATH A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)	GRANNY APPLE GREEN A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)	REGALS 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (11.75)

Today I'm sharing two cards, both inspired by Jen B's layout over at Freshly Made Sketches this week:

I thought this was the perfect layout to showcase a piece of the Countryside Inn designer series paper - the only question was which sheet to choose! Eventually I settled on a busy, dark blue floral - take a look:

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

I kept my card really simple with some layering to pick up on the colours in the paper and I finished with a diecut sentiment that I haven't yet used from the Wanted To Say Dies and a sprinkle of self-adhesive sequins:

This style of sketch is great if you have a 'busy' paper design as it really allows it to shine. Before I constructed my card though, as I worked out where I wanted to place my diagonal lines, I decided I couldn't allow the central section to be 'hidden' under my navy panel, so I snipped it out. This gave me an odd-shaped scrap, but one that was perfect to create a second card by layering it onto a navy panel:

For my second card I added a simple stamped sentiment from the 'Gorgeously Made' stamp set that I stamped in Night of Navy on a scrap of Basic White cardstock and again added a few blue sequins to highlight the pretty blue in the paper:

These sequins are supposed to be Balmy Blue but I think they look much more like Tahitian Tide, especially when paired with this paper. A great #simplestamping card - a couple of scraps and a few more sequins and an additional card, from just one piece of designer series paper. I'm linking my second post up over at Just Add Ink where they are looking for us to use two of scraps, strips and sequins; I went with scraps and sequins, although I had a strip of leftover DSP too which I added to the inside of my card - no need for wastage!

Here's one final photo of both cards together:

Which one do you prefer? I must say I like them both in their own way. That paper is so pretty - and all the better for being on offer this month as part of the designer series paper sale!

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. I'm spending mine doing some admin whilst the James Juniors delight in having a big tidying session, throwing away all of their notes and revision materials in a celebration of post-scholastic freedom! I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

COUNTRYSIDE INN 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (9.98)	WANTED TO SAY DIES (37.00)	NIGHT OF NAVY A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)	TAHITIAN TIDE A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)	MISTY MOONLIGHT A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)	BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (10.00)
NIGHT OF NAVY CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	PASTEL ADHESIVE-BACKED SEQUINS (7.50)	GORGEOUSLY MADE CLING STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (23.00)

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 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)

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 'Global Forgiveness Day' which is on 7th July. 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. This week I used green, blue, heart embellishment, background stamp and maps/globes from the list along with the layout over at Hand Stamped Sentiments and the colour palette over at Sunday Stamps (I used Cherry Cobbler, Soft Sea Foam and Boho Blue from the palette) and this is what I came up with:

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

The HSS layout is a great one to showcase that Watercolour World background stamp on that feature panel because although there is a large focal sentiment too, you still get to see plenty of the map detail. I decided to try something different with this stamp today: I stamped the map in Soft Sea Foam onto Basic White cardstock, then immediately clear embossed it. This both intensified the colour of the soft green and allowed me to add my Boho Blue ink with a blender brush to my image around the coastal outline, blending out to nothing, without discolouring the land. I love this effect! I used a Boho Blue card base and DSP layer to bring out the blue colour, and added a sentiment from the retired 'Begin With A Dream' stamp set that I embellished with a (retired) Cherry Cobbler heart: 

Having punched a couple of notches in either side of my map layer, I then added a length of Cherry Cobbler thick twine and tied it in a bow to finish my card. I would normally do this across a sentiment, but since the twine doesn't obscure the wording I went with it and I quite like the finished result.

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. 

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; exams are officially over in the James household today so we are having lunch out and a trip to the farm to pick strawberries this afternoon to celebrate - we know how to live! I'll be back soon with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

WATERCOLOR WORLD CLING STAMP SET (22.00)	STYLISH SHAPES DIES (28.00)	2023–2025 IN COLOR 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (11.75)	BOHO BLUE A4 CARDSTOCK (9.50)	BOHO BLUE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	BLENDING BRUSHES (13.00)
SOFT SEA FOAM CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	BASICS EMBOSSING POWDERS (17.00)	TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (6.25)