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 speed stamping challenge chosen by Heather H:

I decided I would go with tulips as my flower bulb of choice and focus on using the stamps rather than the dies in the Sunshine & Tulips bundle for a change. Take a look at what I came up with:

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

Simple Stamping For Speed - Given that this week is our speed stamping challenge week, where you have to make your card in under 10 minutes, I had to bear this in mind when I thought about the design for my card. I decided to keep the shapes simple and with the exception of the diecut circle, everything else was simply cut to size with a trimmer. I used the row of tulips stamp to create a panel of repeated tone-on-tone stamping which I stamped freehand for speed and then trimmed to size when I was happy with the length. I stamped the larger tulip onto my diecut circle, then finally overlaid this with a strip featuring my sentiment. Simple! 

A Trio of 2026-28 In Colo(u)rs - I thought I'd ring the changes with this set by featuring three of the new 2026-28 In Colours: Peaceful Pine, Crisp Cantaloupe and Barely Blush. I must say I wasn't a fan of Crisp Cantaloupe first time around some years ago, but I am liking it more this time around - it compliments the other In Colours nicely. 

If you like the new set of In Colors, remember you can receive them for FREE in addition to the usual free product you receive when you sign up to be a Stampin' Up! demonstrator during the month of May - why not give it a go? If you'd like to know more, please do get in touch as I'm happy to answer any questions you may have.

A Timely Finish - So how long did my card take me to make? 8 minutes and 37 seconds:

Honestly, that's quite a long time for such a simple card, but the reason for this is that I had to stamp that focal point tulip a couple of times before I was happy (enough) with the result. I was struggling to get a sharp image - I clearly need more practice with the combination of photopolymer stamps and the new ink pads. As you can see above, the image still wasn't perfect but given the need for speed I think it can pass on this occasion.

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 or packaging project that fits the challenge.
• For a Speed Stamping Challenge you must tell us the time it took to make your project and it must be finished in under 10 min.
• Please include the challenge graphic and link back to the challenge in your post.
• Make sure you link the specific post and not the whole blog to the Linky. Use AYSI#(insert challenge number) when uploading to a public gallery
• Please turn off word verification so that we can send you lots of feedback.
• You can combine our challenge with up to 3 other compatible challenges. 
• We do reserve the right to delete, or not consider for Top Pick and Featured Artist, entries that do not comply with these guidelines.

Enjoy your day; it's predicted to be a scorcher this Bank Holiday weekend here in the UK, so mine is starting with a session at the gym, followed by grocery shopping and a couple of appointments before heading out to the river to get on my paddleboard for the first time this year. Wish me luck! I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

STYLISH SHAPES DIES (£28.00)

SUNSHINE & TULIPS BUNDLE (ENGLISH) (£43.00)

2026–2028 IN COLOR™ A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)

2026–2028 IN COLOR™ CLASSIC STAMPIN' PADS (£63.00)

BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)

It's Tuesday and time for a new challenge over at CAS Colours & Sketches. Our first challenge of the month is a sketch challenge: 

We have a focal rectangle with a sentiment beneath and a diagonal line behind. Feel free to flip or rotate the sketch when making your card.

I did turn the layout through 90 degrees for my card today, as I wanted to use the bird trio from 'the Online Exclusives Cutest Crew' stamp set (I'm also linking up with the 'animals' challenge over at CAS on Friday) as I wanted the diagonal behind to be little footprints and it worked better this way around. It did give me a sideways sentiment, but I think it's OK since the card is uber CAS and it's easy to read without too much bodily contortion! 

I used 3 of the new 2026-28 In Color Blends to colour my tweet trio: Golden Glow, Crisp Cantaloupe and a little Peaceful Pine for the grass:

 My favourite part of this card is definitely the row if tiny birdie footprints - sometimes it's the little things, right?

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! colour 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:

CUTEST CREW BUNDLE (ENGLISH) (£42.25)

NESTED ESSENTIALS DIES (£32.00)

BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£16.00)

PEACEFUL PINE STAMPIN’ BLENDS COMBO PACK (£11.25)

CRISP CANTALOUPE STAMPIN’ BLENDS COMBO PACK (£11.25)

GOLDEN GLOW STAMPIN’ BLENDS COMBO PACK (£11.25)

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

Beachcombing - cards that showcase the lovely things we discover on beach walks. As an avid beachcomber and shell collector, I knew exactly which direction I was going in with today's card, so I grabbed the sketch layout over at Sunday Stamps and set to work. Take a look at what I came up with:

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

I took the opportunity to ink up my Shell Collecting stamp for the first time and using a piece of retired pink shell-patterned paper from my stash for my base and colour scheme, I stamped a trio of shells in Melon Mambo and then infilled with the reverse stamp in a couple of different lighter pinks for contrast. I brushed the top one with clear Wink of Stella for a subtle sparkle and added them to a white central panel embossed with the Soft Waves 3D embossing folder - perfect for the challenge over at Inspire.Create this week:: 

Another snippet of designer paper, a trio of sparkly gems and a sentiment from the retired 'Friends Are Like Seashells' stamp set complete my card. I'm not sure I've ever found shells that are bright pink like this, but we're all allowed a little creative licence when if comes to cardmaking, right?

I really like this layout; I hope you do too as I've used it again for another card in a completely different design that I'll be sharing with you over the weekend.

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 or packaging project that fits the challenge.
• Please include the challenge graphic and link back to the challenge in your post.
• Make sure you link the specific post and not the whole blog to the Linky. Use AYSI#(insert challenge number) when uploading to a public gallery
• Please turn off word verification so that we can send you lots of feedback.
• You can combine our challenge with up to 3 other compatible challenges. 
• We do reserve the right to delete, or not consider for Top Pick and Featured Artist, entries that do not comply with these guidelines.

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

SHELL COLLECTING PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (£18.00)

MELON MAMBO CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£10.25)

PRETTY IN PINK CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.65)

WINK OF STELLA GLITTER BRUSH (£9.50)

BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£16.00)

It's Tuesday and time for a new challenge over at CAS Colours & Sketches. Our final challenge of the month is a colour challenge: 

This trio of brights is right in my wheel house, but I decided I wanted something a little more subtle for today's card so I grabbed the sketch over at Just Add Ink for my layout and set to work - take a look at what I came up with:

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

I wanted to have another play with my Forever Florals bundle, so I stamped a sentiment onto my label (I used Basic Grey as opposed to black just to soften it slightly) and then added some Lemon Lime Twist ink and a blend of Flirty Flamingo and Pumpkin Pie inks to some white cardstock with a blending brush to soften the colours, before diecutting three floral clusters and framing my sentiment label with them:

Mindful that I used the large circle of the sketch for my sentiment and therefore hadn't used the sentiment strip, I added a small tab of ombre Lemon Lime Twist ribbon to the back of my label so that it is still in keeping with the layout but without spoiling the overall clean and simple feel.

I'm also linking today's card up over at TicTacToe Challenge (I went across the top of the board with CAS/diecut/floral) and over at CAS On Friday where the challenge is 'sympathy' - this thinking of you sentiment in the Forever Florals set, along with a couple of the others, make for lovely sympathy cards.

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! colour 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:

FOREVER FLORALS BUNDLE (ENGLISH) (£46.75)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£16.00)	BLENDING BRUSHES (£14.00)	BASIC GRAY CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)	FLIRTY FLAMINGO CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)	PUMPKIN PIE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)
LEMON LIME TWIST CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)

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

Pay close attention to those recipe ingredients! I was also inspired by the camera image in the Hand Stamped Sentiments badge this week and it's stencil week over at Just Us Girls - my Layers of Beauty stencils are definitely overdue an outing! Always looking for interesting ways to use Layers of Beauty, today's card pairs them with one of last month's Online Exclusives bundles - take a look:

 Here's the low-down on today's card:

Capturing Smiles - I bought the Capturing Smiles bundle primarily for scrapbooking, but it works for cards too. I was a little intimidated at how many parts made up the camera and how they fitted together, but I needn't have worried; once stamped and diecut (my first recipe item), they went together easily. I kept things simple in black and white for my first attempt, with a black and white twine strap and added a negative strip with a stamped heart framed within it (that's my second recipe item).  My single word sentiment also comes from the bundle - although I snipped away the other words that went with it (recipe item three). 

Layers Of Beauty - I nestled my camera amongst two sets of stamped and diecut flowers (my fourth recipe item) from Layers of Beauty, stencilled in Pretty in Pink and Flirty Flamingo, with white leaves as I really wanted the pinks to take centre stage. I love these florals and stencils so much - and although they are sadly retiring at last, I will still be keeping and using mine.

Farewell Pretty In Pink - Pretty in Pink is definitely my favourite of the retiring in-colours and today's card is a real celebration of it. I used it for the base, in my stencilled blooms and my sparkly gems (recipe item number five): 

That's my recipe complete! I have a confession - the original card I made for this challenge was completely finished ... then I realised it had a multi-word sentiment that couldn't be changed! So if you'd like to see that card, come back tomorrow as I'll be sharing it then. The moral of the story is - pay more attention to the ingredients list upfront!!

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 or packaging project that fits the challenge.
• For a Recipe Challenge use all elements of the recipe - the possibilities within those parameters are endless.
• Please include the challenge graphic and link back to the challenge in your post.
• Make sure you link the specific post and not the whole blog to the Linky. Use AYSI#(insert challenge number) when uploading to a public gallery
• Please turn off word verification so that we can send you lots of feedback.
• You can combine our challenge with up to 3 other compatible challenges. 
• We do reserve the right to delete, or not consider for Top Pick and Featured Artist, entries that do not comply with these guidelines.

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

LAYERS OF BEAUTY BUNDLE (ENGLISH) (£54.00)	CAPTURING SMILES BUNDLE (ENGLISH) (£44.00)	PRETTY IN PINK A4 CARDSTOCK (£12.60)	PRETTY IN PINK CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.65)	FLIRTY FLAMINGO CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)	BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)
BASIC BLACK A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)	SPARKLE DOT ESSENTIALS (£6.75)

It's Tuesday and time for a new challenge over at CAS Colours & Sketches. This week's challenge is a sketch challenge and Deborah has asked that we add a trio of images to the lower portion of our card, along with a sentiment. Feel free to flip or rotate the sketch when making your card.

For my card today I took my inspiration from those yummy-looking ring donuts in the Just Add Ink inspo photo this week, and focused on the colours of the white one at the front with the blue, pink, peach and pale yellow sprinkles. I used rings of a different kind though - take a look:

Today's card features three new products - can you spot them all? Here's the low-down on today's card:

Make A Splash - I chose inflatable rubber rings (as opposed to donuts) for the three circles of the sketch, courtesy of the new Online Exclusive set 'Splash & Relax' which will be available in May. There are some great sentiments in addition to a selection of rubber rings and beach balls in the stamp set, but the dies that coordinate are so much fun - they include a sun visor, smoothie cup and sunglasses amongst other things! I almost chose three separate die cut images, but decided to keep things simple with a trio of rubber rings. I chose the colours of the sprinkles for each one - this does make them look rather like Party Rings though! Do any of my overseas readers know what I'm talking about? Party Rings are a ring shaped biscuit (aka cookie) with pastel icing on the top that are beloved of UK children everywhere - or certainly the James Juniors and their friends when the were little.

Water, Water Everywhere - The watery detail that I used to add interest behind my rubber rings is courtesy of the new Water Decorative Mask stencil that will debut in the new April catalogue. It is paired with one that feature dotted lines and is a whopping 12" x 12", so perfect for all kind of projects large and small. You can see the detail on the close up below:

I Spy A New In-Colour - The final new item on today's card is the shade of blue that I used for the water - this is Hydrangea Hue, one of the upcoming new in-colours and it was a great match for the blue on the JAI palette above.

A sentiment from the Splash & Relax set completes my card.  

Here is the visual summary of the key products used on today's project for you to pin for easy reference:

You can see all of my 'How To' summaries on my 'How To - Tips and Techniques' Pinterest board in case you've missed any. 

Enjoy your day and I'll be back later in the week with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Today I'm sharing my design team card for our new challenge over at As you See It where it's time for a fun 'fill in the blank' challenge by Heather H:

Completing today's sentence was an easy one: besides Christmas, I definitely mail more thank you cards than any other. I always send thank you cards to customers who place Stampin' Up! orders with me and I love to show my appreciation of anyone who demonstrates thoughtfulness. Now I made a couple of thank you cards with today's challenge in mind - I'll share the first card I made tomorrow; today I'm sharing the 'happy accident' that was my second card that came about as I was rummaging through my stamp sets and found the perfect sentiment for that layout over at Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge this week - take a look:

 Here's the low-down on today's card:

Today's card is a celebration of old favourites - the sentiments in the retired 'Love You Sew' stamp set were the perfect shape for the panel in the sketch. I couldn't resist this punny thank you one, so I paired it with a variety of pinks and some Night of Navy of Navy so that I could play along over at Color Dare too. I used Strawberry Slush for my cardbase and added a diecut layer using the Dots & Spots Die (also retired). I stamped some lines in Bubble Bath to look like a notepad using one of the stamp from the retired 'Tap Tap Tap' stamp set, then rounded the corners and used a border punch across the top of the panel before adding my sentiment in Night of Navy and finishing with a bow-shaped paper clip for a touch of fun. That fun vertical element consists of a piece of Pretty In Pink cardstock cut with the Large Scallop Die, a piece of retired Melon Mambo Brights designer paper with a circle pattern and a piece of navy cardstock, tied with some Strawberry Slush baker's twine:

I wouldn't normally mix so many pinks on one card unless I was colour blending, but I think this kind of works and the navy is a great complimentary colour. Whilst this card won't be going to any of my customers - I like to send them cards made with current product for obvious reasons - I am sure I will have a use for this card before too long!

Here's a summary of our challenge rules:

• Create any card, scrapbooking page, 3D or packaging project that fits the challenge.
• For a Fill In The Blank Challenge, please complete the sentence and explain how it relates to your card.
• Please include the challenge graphic and link back to the challenge in your post.
• Make sure you link the specific post and not the whole blog to the Linky. Use AYSI#(insert challenge number) when uploading to a public gallery
• Please turn off word verification so that we can send you lots of feedback.
• You can combine our challenge with up to 3 other compatible challenges. 
• We do reserve the right to delete, or not consider for Top Pick and Featured Artist, entries that do not comply with these guidelines.

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

It's Tuesday and time for a new challenge over at CAS Colours & Sketches. We are a (calendar not challenge) day early to keep you on your toes as Deborah is hosting for the month of April and our first challenge is a colour challenge: 

I love this trio of bright colours that Deborah chose and Melon Mambo is one of my all-time favourite pinks - however I did struggle to know what to create today! So it seemed appropriate to make a card ... just because! Here's my card:

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

Do you ever make cards 'just because'? I never under-estimate the joy that an unexpected piece of 'happy mail' can bring and today's card is one of those that is perfect for such an occasion. Using a blending brush, I created a mix of the two greens on a piece of white cardstock then I took that beautiful textured leaf die from Nature's Symphony and cut out a variegated stem. This is such a fun technique as no two diecuts ever look the same. To that I added a simple bold Melon Mambo sentiment using my favourite Words of Beauty bundle:

I couldn't resist adding a trio of pink glossy dots from my stash to complete my card. 

Here is the visual summary of the key products used on today's project for you to pin for easy reference:

You can see all of my 'How To' summaries on my 'How To - Tips and Techniques' Pinterest board in case you've missed any. 

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! colour 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; it's supposed to be getting warmer here today with temperatures peaking at 17 degrees, which seems balmy compared to the chilly temperatures of late, however I can honestly say it's not looking that promising so far - I'll believe it when I feel it! I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

WORDS OF BEAUTY BUNDLE (ENGLISH) (£43.00)	NATURE'S SYMPHONY DIES (£31.00)	MELON MAMBO A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)	MELON MAMBO CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)	SUMMER SPLASH CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)	SHY SHAMROCK CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)
BLENDING BRUSHES (£14.00)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£16.00)

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

I love these pretty pastels that LeAnne chose this week! I decided to create another card using my Flowers Fair stamp, using Amy's sketch over at Freshly Made Sketches for my layout - take a look:

 Here's the low-down on today's card:

For today's card I coloured the Flowers Fair stamped florals with my Stampin' Blends in each of the challenge colours, then cropped a portion of it and framed with my Impressions Abloom Dies (the closest thing I have to an oval). I do love the detail on the frame piece, it's subtle but there. I ran my horizontal strip of Pretty In Pink cardstock through my Big Shot with the mini corrugated embossing folder for a little added texture and added a sentiment from the January Product of the Month stamp set, Fabulous Sayings:

I felt like my card needed something more, so before I glued it all together I added a sheet of retired Subtles DSP to my card base. The pattern is very subtle in Soft Sea Foam, but was just what I needed. A trio of Pool Party sequins and some baker's twine complete my card - which is my 'just add 2' for the ladies over at Just Add Ink too.

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 or packaging project that fits the challenge.
• For a Colour Challenge use all of the given colours and only those colours with these exceptions:
• White and Very Vanilla are free colours.
• In addition, you may use of ONE of these neutrals: Basic Black, Basic Gray, Crumb Cake, Basic Beige.
• Please include the challenge graphic and link back to the challenge in your post.
• Make sure you link the specific post and not the whole blog to the Linky. Use AYSI#(insert challenge number) when uploading to a public gallery
• Please turn off word verification so that we can send you lots of feedback.
• You can combine our challenge with up to 3 other compatible challenges. 
• We do reserve the right to delete, or not consider for Top Pick and Featured Artist, entries that do not comply with these guidelines.

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

It's Tuesday and time for a new challenge over at CAS Colours & Sketches. This week's challenge is a sketch challenge and I have a cutaway rectangle with a focal point in the space and an overlaid sentiment:

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

For my card today I wanted to use up one of the unicorns I fussy cut from the retired Myths & Magic designer series paper that I had leftover from my Paper Players card a couple of weeks ago - it was just the right size for my focal image:

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

I embossed my panel of Melon Mambo cardstock with the Soft Waves embossing folder for a sense of movement and added some clear Wink of Stella for a subtle unicorn trail. Check out that sparkly unicorn:

I added a sentiment from the 'Terrific Toadstools' stamp set and a few clear rhinestones to complete my card.

Here is the visual summary of the key products used on today's project for you to pin for easy reference:

You can see all of my 'How To' summaries on my 'How To - Tips and Techniques' Pinterest board in case you've missed any. 

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

TERRIFIC TOADSTOOLS PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£18.00)

SOFT WAVES 3D EMBOSSING FOLDER (£10.25)

BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£16.00)

MELON MAMBO A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)

WINK OF STELLA GLITTER BRUSH (£9.50)

RHINESTONE BASIC JEWELS (£5.75)