No blog post yesterday as I was holding my second card class of the week. Lots of laughs as always, with pictures and stories to follow, but today I thought I'd share with you a commission I had last week for a christening card. I needed to make an A5 card and decided a christening gown was the order of the day:

I decided to use the large scallop Edgelits die and one of the Delicate Designs embossing folders to create the layers on the dress and sprayed these with Vanilla Smooch Spritz to give the layers a lovely pearlised sheen, to add interest to an otherwise all-white card. Hopefully you can see the effect on this close-up, although white-on-white is incredibly difficult to photograph:

In reality it looked beautiful! Given the size of the card, and the fact that it was intended as a keepsake, I also made a box for it ad finished off with a handmade angel charm - here's a close up:

I even ended up getting out my calligraphy pen to write the dedication on the inside - haven't used that in a while! Whilst I was on something of a christening 'role', I made another couple of smaller cards - lots of photos today, so I'll save those for another post! Hope you like today's card. Back tomorrow with another project; until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up Supplies:

Cardstock: Whisper White

Tools: Large Scallop Edgelit, Delicate Designs Embossing Folder

Finishing Touches: Vanilla Smooch Spritz, 5/8" Whisper White Organza Ribbon

Today I thought I'd share a couple of projects that I made for my good neighbour and friend and fill you in on the story that goes with them. My neighbour is MAD about dogs! Not just a dog-lover - I mean, head-over-heels, mad about her canine friends (and other animals too, but that's a whole other story!) Anyway, anyone reading this who knows me, knows that I am SO not like this; it's not that I don't like animals, it's just that I've never really had a pet and I don't really understand the pet-owner bond; combined with my OCD cleaning obsession this means that I can't imagine having a four legged friend running round the house, as much as my children plague me to get one. As a consequence, I have been known to say the wrong thing on occasion as far as pets are concerned; I would like to think I've learned from some of my previous faux-pas though, so when my neighbour's beloved great dane, Chelsea, passed away recently I decided to do something special to remember her. I decorated a box frame to house a favourite picture of her and this is the finished result: 

You might think it a bit pink, but for all her size and stature, she was a real girly dog if there is such a thing, with a bright pink collar and always to be seen wearing a bright pink necktie. The sentiment, 'You're in my thoughts, you're in my heart" seemed so appropriate in the circumstances. Whilst Chelsea will never be forgotten, her passing has been followed by the arrival of a new neighbour; a beautiful grey baby great dane puppy called Storm. To welcome her, I made a card, similar to one I'd seen designed by Mary Fish. You can see her card here; and this is my version:

I did add some grey stitched grosgrain ribbon across the front too, but I can't find the photo with ribbon so you'll just have to use your imagination! I stayed with the pink theme toned in with grey - I love the punch art paw print, don't you? Lastly, for all you other many dog lovers reading this, I thought you might like to see a picture of the new puppy - so here she is, Storm in all her glory:

Isn't she just the cutest?! That's all for today - back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up Supplies:

Stamps: Word Play, Sassy Salutations

Cardstock: Regal Rose, Melon Mambo, Basic Grey, Whisper White, Pretty in Pink, Rose Red

Ink/Stampin' Write Markers:  Melon Mambo, Basic Grey

Tools: Full Heart Punch, Owl Punch, 3/4" Circle Punch, Large Scallop Edgelits

Finishing Touches: Basics Rhinestones

As promised, today I'm going to share the swaps I made to take to Telford for the Stampin' Up! regional training day on Saturday; lots of excited crafty ladies (and a few gents!) spent the day crafting, swapping and getting up to speed with all the latest news from Stampin' Up!. As is customary at these events, we all created 'swaps' to share and showcase each other's work. I often find swaps a tricky concept - the desire to create something special, but at the same time simple enough that to create a large volume of them won't take hours or break the bank.

In my wisdom, I decided I would break the seal on a stamp set I bought at the start of the year, but haven't yet used: Summer Silhouettes. I loved the look of this stamp set and have seen many beautiful examples of cards 'random stamped' with the flowers in this set. This was however, my first challenge; as my dear husband so often says to me, "(you) don't do random" - and it would seem this follows me into my stamping. I lost count of the amount of card I cut, stamped and binned before getting to a design I was finally happy with! So I ended up with this as my 'first final design' (I know, bear with me!):

I loved the stamping and fussy cut edge, along with the sentiment and pierced border to ground it. However I didn't like the position of the butterfly, but couldn't move it without removing the ribbon, so here is my final (yes, really!) design:

It took hours to finish them and I still could have made twice as many - there were so many people with great swaps! I will photograph some of my favourites and share those with you later in the week. If you would like to be one of the first to know what's going on in the world of Stampin' Up!, get free products (yes, all still to come!), great training and business advice and a permanent product discount to feed your own crafting habit, then this is a great time to join my team - until May 30th, you can get £155 of products for £99; add in a business supplies pack and you get a whopping £200 of kit for £99 - bargain! Check out the Special Offers box on the right hand side of my page or Contact me to talk about how you can sign up and start benefiting straight away; if you sign up in May, you will be one of the first to preview and order from the new annual catalogue due out on July 1st and you will have the opportunity to attend Stampin' Up's! European Convention in November, which is being held in Manchester in the UK this year.

Pop back tomorrow for another project; I have so much to share this week, including some great cards that we are making at this week's card class. Until then, happy stampin!

Stampin' Up Supplies:

Stamps: Summer Silhouettes, Wacky Wishes

Cardstock: Whisper White, Daffodil Delight, Island Indigo, Pool Party

Ink/Stampin' Write Markers: Daffodil Delight, Island Indigo, Pool Party, Wild Wasabi

Tools: Beautiful Wings Embosslits, Essentials Paper Piercing Pack, Piercing Tool

Finishing Touches: Daffodil Delight Seam Binding Ribbon

Well, it's been a busy weekend: Stampin' Up! regional training in Telford yesterday, preparing for this week's classes today, so am rather behind with my posts. Yesterday was a great day, with lots to share in the coming weeks, however I returned home with the most dreadful headache, so couldn't focus long enough to finish yesterday's post. I will share my swaps tomorrow instead, as today's post is a timely one as it's International Mother's Day; we in the UK had our Mother's Day a while ago now, but for my American and Canadian friends celebrating today, I thought I would share the Mother's Day card I made for my Mother-In-Law, which I couldn't share at the time as she reads my blog and so I couldn't spoil the surprise! This was her card:

Very pink just about sums it up! Can you see the lovely shimmer on the butterflies? This is courtesy of the liberal spray of Vanilla Smooch Spritz - they really sparkle when they catch the light. This card would of course also make a lovely birthday card for a Mum.

One of my favourite books is 'Good Mother, Bad Mother' by Gina Ford (a modern day heroine in my view) and there is a line at the beginning that says "the hand that rocks the cradle is the hand that rules the world" - I so love that line, so to Mothers everywhere, this one's for you - hope you've had a lovely day.

Back tomorrow with my Telford swaps; until them, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up Supplies:

Stamps: En Francais

Cardstock: Whisper White, Melon Mambo, Pretty in Pink

Ink/Stampin' Write Markers: Pretty in Pink

Tools: Elegant Butterfly Punch, Bitty Butterfly Punch, Typeset Alphabet

Finishing Touches: Vanilla Smooch Spritz, Basics Rhinestones

Good evening, blog followers! Apologies for the lack of blog post yesterday; things have been very busy in the world of the Crafty Owl this past few days and yesterday just ran away with me. Anyway, back today with a card I wanted to share in advance of next week's card class featuring my favourite punch of all time - the owl punch. This punch really is so versatile; there are many examples of alternative uses for this punch.  Today I'm sharing an alien pop-up card, inspired by the many examples found on Pinterest - this is the outside: 

Recognise the alien in the spaceship? An upside-down owl with one eye, along with some punch art planets and stars. When you open it up, the inside looks like this: 

A trio of aliens pop up to wish you a happy birthday! This kind of card is such fun - you can customise your aliens and make them different every time. perfect for a birthday that's 'out of this world'! The owl punch is the feature punch for this month's card class - if you live in Northampton and the surrounding areas and would be interested in attending one of my classes, do get in touch for more details. Right - I'm done with the alien puns; I'm off to try and schedule tomorrow's blog post as I'll be on a Stampin' Up! regional training day in Telford all day - should be fun! Until tomorrow, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up Supplies:

Stamps: Happiest Birthday Wishes (retired)

Cardstock: Whisper White, Rich Razzleberry, Tempting Turquoise, Pacific Point, Pumpkin Pie, Basic Black, Concord Crush (retired), Poppy Parade (retired) 

Ink/Stampin' Write Markers: Concord Crush (retired)

Tools: Owl Punch, Large Oval Punch, Small Oval Punch, 1" Circle Punch, 1 1/4" Circle Punch, Oval Framelits, Bitty Banners

A quick post from me today, as I've spent most of my evening making a paper mache mask for my 5 year old to take into school tomorrow (apparently, this is Mum's homework - and that's according to the teacher, so I can't really quibble with my son!) My card is one I made to share with the ladies at my last stamp class, showing them the different effects you could get with the Blossom Punch flower:

I chose Pool Party as the feature colour for this card - I'm so glad this in-colour is staying. A simple stamped background, but by cutting the petals right through along their length it gives a very delicate finish. All finished off with a couple of scalloped circles and a large pearl - very simple and could be used for a variety of occasions.

That's all for today; there is lots happening in my craft room at the moment, with regional training swaps, commissions, class planning and lots more to share, so come back tomorrow for another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up Supplies:

Stamps: Mixed Bunch

Cardstock: Pool Party, Whisper White

Ink/Stampin' Write Markers: Pool Party

Tools: Blossom Punch, 7/8" Scallop Circle Punch, Itty Bitty Punches

Finishing Touches: Basics Pearls

Another dress up project today, but today I'm going 3D with these cute boxes, the perfect size to hold a lip balm. I actually made a couple of these as quick gifts, but then couldn't resist making a third one for myself! I got busy with my polka Dot Parade paper; here they are - guess which one is mine?

The first one is in Marina Mist polka dots with taffeta ribbon:

The second one is in Real Red with some of the flower trim: 

Lastly, Rich Razzleberry with some stitched grosgrain ribbon:

I think there's something very 'Pretty Woman' about these and they really are so easy to make. They make great little treat boxes, or would make lovely table favours for a leavers prom too, perhaps with a couple of chocolates inside. Another great use for this versatile set (oh, and in case you were wondering - the red one is mine!).

One last thing - further to my post last week about Stampin' Up!'s new This and That Journal and the discounted bundle offer that can be purchased in May (see the 'Special Offers' section in the side bar for more details), I will be posting a 'This and That' journal tip on my Facebook page each day for the rest of the month, with lots of thoughts and ideas on how you can get great use from your journal. Click the 'follow me on Facebook' icon on the right-hand side to make sure you see these tips in your daily news feed and do drop me a line when you're ready to purchase yours!

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

Stampin' Up Supplies:

Cardstock: Marina Mist, Real Red, Rich Razzleberry, Whisper White, Polka Dot Parade DSP

Ink: Marina Mist, Real Red, Rich Razzleberry

Tools: Dress Up Framelits, Big Shot, Jewelry Tag Punch

Finishing Touches: Taffeta Ribbon Marina Mist, 1/4" Stitched Grosgrain Ribbon Rich Razzleberry, Flower Trim, Baker's Twine

What a lovely day for a Bank Holiday! I'm writing this post sat in the afternoon sunshine in my garden, that I have been lovely trying to whip into shape all day after a winter that has lasted far too long for my liking - a blissful weather day. Today's card is another showcasing the versatility of the Dress Up framelits (well, I haven't blogged one for a few days now, so it must be time for another!). Here it is: 

I love to design my own cards, but sometimes it's nice to recreate something I've seen designed by someone else too. Crafters are generous folks and don't mind you casing so long as you give them due credit; sometimes I just case because I really love the design and it needs no further explanation, however I decided to reproduce today's card because there were some specific things I liked about it that I thought would be good to share with you:

• This makes great use of the Tea for Two designer series paper; I had this out on my desk as I'd been using it for another project, but what better way to remove the indecision associated with which side of the DSP to use - simply cut out the mannequin and flip it over - you get to see both sides of the paper and there's no waste!
• This card is so quick and easy to make - you could turn one of these out in under 5 minutes. Sometimes time is of the essence!
• I love the little trick with the Bitty Banners: instead of printing and punching flat, you print and cut two banners, then cut the ends off one and adhere underneath the ends of the complete one using glue dots. This gives them just enough height to look like a ribbon floating across the mannequin. Another great way to get extra mileage from this set and create a different look.

This card was so quick to make, I made another one with a different banner at the same time - here they are both together: 

Well, that's all for today - I'm off to enjoy my first proper BBQ of the year. I can smell the sausages cooking - typing this for the last 5 minutes has been close to torture! Back tomorrow with another project - until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up Supplies:

Cardstock: Very Vanilla, Calypso Coral, Bashful Blue, Tea for Two DSP

Ink: Chocolate Chip

Tools: Dress Up Framelits, Big Shot, Bitty Banners Framelits

Today's card is one I made a while ago when I was going through my Spring Sampler workout, but lost the photograph so had to take it again. This is a great birthday card for a 'little person' and would work for either a boy or a girl:

This type of card is so easy to make and really lends itself to a stamp set of small single images. Are you wondering how I got the curved edges on the coloured panels? I cut my strips to length and made them slightly narrower than 1 1/4", then fed the end into my 1 1/4" circle punch from the top so that only the end was punched, not a whole circle. I hope this makes sense - as I've tried to explain it I think I should have taken a picture as it would have been much clearer!

Back tomorrow with another project - until then, enjoy your Bank Holiday weekend and happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up Supplies:

Stamps: Spring Sampler

Cardstock: Whisper White, Real Red, Tangerine Tango, Daffodil Delight,  Gumball Green, Tempting Turqouise, Crumb Cake

Ink: Real Red, Tangerine Tango, Daffodil Delight, Gumball Green, Tempting Turqouise

Tools: 1" Circle Punch, 1 1/4" circle punch

Finishing Touches: Sycamore Street Ribbon (Sale-A-Bration - retired)

Well, it might be May, but this is so a day of April showers! After my third trip back out to the washing line to rescue my washing from another downpour, I gave up and resorted to the tumble dryer. Not very eco-friendly I know, but with sports kits that need to be washed, dried and ironed to be back at school on Tuesday, what is a girl to do?!

Given the weather, it seems like a great oportunity to share another of my training day outputs with you:

The Cloudy Day Embossing Folder is a personal favourite of mine, and my 'go to' embossing pattern at the moment - I love the ease with which you can create the cloud effect. A nice pink umbrella, fussy cut with my trusty paper snips - who wouldn't be cheered by one of these on a showery day? - and another Cute Clip, to highlight the sentiment. There's a lot going on around the sentiment - here's a close up view:

This would be a great card to brighten someone's day - I hope it has lifted your spirits too! I'm off to do a quick hour's crafting whilst the house is quiet, as everyone else has gone out to the weekly swimming lesson. Back tomorrow with another project; until then, happy stampin!

Stampin' Up Supplies:

Stamps: Rain or Shine

Cardstock: Lucky Limeade, Pacific Point, Whisper White, Sunshine and Sprinkles DSP

Ink: Basic Grey, Pacific Point

Tools: Cloudy Day Embossing Folder, Scallop Trim Border Punch

Finishing Touches: Basics Rhinestones, 1/4" Stitched Grosgrain Ribbon Basic Grey, Cute Clips