Today I'm sharing a card for the current challenge over at Colour Inkspiration where they are celebrating their 200th challenge - congratulations!

This card ended up becoming a set of 6 so I'm also entering the card set challenge over at TGIF Challenges - more on that shortly. First up, this was my initial card:

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

Real Red Forever - As my dear friend Jan said when she made her DT card for this challenge, being asked to choose your favourite SU colour is a little like being asked to choose your favourite child - impossible, right? I decided to answer this question, I would take a look at which colour of cardstock I had the most of - because this is a sure sign that this is a colour I use a lot! The answer was hands down, Real Red - which also happens to be one of the first three ink pad colours I ever purchased at the start of my SU journey (the others were Pacific Point - now retired although replaced in my affections with blueberry Bushel - and Old Olive - still current but usurped by Shaded Spruce, my favourite green ever!) I use the other reds too, but Real Red will always be my favourite - a true scarlet red that works for so many occasions. 

Having chosen my colour, this also gave me the opportunity to use my favourite sheet of red and gold poinsettias in the Traditions of Christmas specialty DSP pack that I had yet to cut into. I decided to use the paper as a base, then add a simple diecut label using the Branching Out Dies, and finish with a simple layered sentiment using my Concorde & 9th Holiday Sayings Dies:

Di you know that the poinsettia is a flower that is believed to symbolise peace? This simple greeting seemed therefore appropriate, layered in gold foil and the DSP behind. A simple sentiment completes the inside of my card - this is the only stamping on today's card:

Make The Most Of Your DSP - Having cut the pieces for my initial card, I was struck by how much of the pattern I was ultimately going to cover with my label; so before I stuck the pieces down, I cut another smaller label from the patterned paper and backed this with one in gold foil, to create a second card design that was the reverse of the first one:

This time, I added my sentiment in Real Red, backed with gold foil:

This is a great way to get two cards out of one piece of DSP. Here's a photo of both cards together:

A Card Set - I had cut a single length of paper from my initial 12x12 DSP sheet, which enabled me to make three cards. Using the above 2-for-1 principle, I managed to make a set of 6 cards, 3 of each of the 2 designs:

I really wanted the designer paper and the colour to take centre stage, so didn't add any thing else in the way of embellishments to my card. A great way to produce a set of cards that would make a lovely gift. Which card design do you prefer? I think I ended up liking the second card design even more than the first!

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 off to my pilates class this morning and am going out for my first Christmas night out this evening with one of my closest friends, so looking forward to that. In between time, I need to stop making Christmas cards and start writing some! I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

TRADITIONS OF CHRISTMAS 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) SPECIALTY DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£14.40)

BRANCHING OUT DIES (£27.00)

REAL RED A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)

GOLD FOIL SHEETS (£4.75)

WORDS FOR THE SEASON CLING STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£13.20)

BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)

Happy hump day everyone! Today I'm sharing another card for this week's challenge over at Just Us Girls where it's anything goes Stencil Week:

I said on Sunday I had another idea that I wanted to try involving one of my Christmas stencils and since I managed to grab some crafty time today I thought I'd share it - take a look:

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

I used this stencil, called Christmas Bauhaus by Uniko, for a previous JUGS stencil challenge (you can see that card here if you missed it). Today I chose a blue and aqua colour scheme inspired by the palette over at Color Dare as I wanted to turn Santa into a snowman. During the Craft Room Clear Out (this is now worthy of capital letters, it is turning into an event of epic proportions!) I discovered part of a long retired accessory kit containing some fun snowman-themed enamel pieces, so I used these to overlay the stencilled face. I cut a base and mat in the same colours before adding my stencilled panel and a heat-embossed retired sentiment from the 'Christmas Messages' stamp set. I added a few other co-ordinating sparkly gems to complete my card: 

Isn't that just so fun?! I was unsure whether the orange carrot nose might disqualify me over at Color Dare, as those ladies run a tight challenge ship, but I notice that one of their DTs, Rebecca, has a few touches of orange on her delightful penguin, so I'm going to link up and take my chances ;-)

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

BALMY BLUE A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)	COASTAL CABANA A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)	BALMY BLUE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)	COASTAL CABANA CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)	POOL PARTY CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)	BLENDING BRUSHES (£14.00)
BASIC BLACK A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)	BASICS WOW! EMBOSSING POWDER (£20.00)	BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)

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 as it's the fifth Sunday of the month, she has a fun tictactoe challenge for us to work with:

I am still in Christmas mode so went both down the first column with white/Christmas/diecuts and the diagonal white/stencilling/sparkle for my card today. My card features another of my new stencils, the Berries and Leaves stencils by Kristina Werner and Concord and 9th - take a look:

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

I decided today's card would feature mistletoe, with green foliage and white berries, with a festive red background. I inked the background first, then the foliage, adding ink with my blending brushes to my white cardstock. Once I'd done this, I decided the berries didn't stand out enough, so added Heat and Stick powder with Versamark and covered them in Dazzling Diamonds glitter - a little on the messy side, but the finished result is oh so sparkly!

A simple layered diecut sentiment, from the Big Type Greetings Dies also by Kristina Werner, complete my card. As I mentioned previously, these KW Dies are HUGE so they make it easy to create two cards in one sitting - here are both my finished cards:

I absolutely love these KW stencils - so festive! I'm also linking today's card up over at Just Us Girls where they are celebrating stencil week for their last challenge of the year (all being well I am hoping to have a second card to share with them before the close later this week) and at Color Dare where they are featuring a festive red and green colour combo.

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; the hubs has gone paddle boarding this morning (a bit too chilly for me!) so I am getting on with a few household tasks before I hopefully squeeze in a little crafty time and some last-minute online Black Friday shopping. I feel much less organised with my Christmas festive planning this year, so need to get cracking, since my diary is getting fuller and the big day is officially less than a month away! I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£13.60)

BLENDING BRUSHES (£14.00)

REAL RED CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)

SHADED SPRUCE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)

Today it's Sunday and time for this week's new challenge over at The Paper Players! It's the turn of the fabulous Ann to host this week and she has my favourite, a sketch challenge for us to work with:

So many possibilities with this sketch! I chose to keep the basic layout and showcase one of my favourite festive designer series papers that I've been waiting for an opportunity to cut into - take a look:

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

There are two patterns in the Traditions of Christmas specialty paper that I absolutely love: the gold embossed red poinsettia sheet and this pattern, combining red poinsettias with Christmas roses and foliage. The gold embossing, and unusual colour combination incorporating Secret Sea and Pool Party into the mix, make for a stunning pattern that should be showcased in all its festive glory, so the three panels of Ann's sketch were perfect. A simple base and a diecut Words For The Season sentiment in gold foil, popped up using adhesive sheet were all that I needed to really allow it to shine:

I liked this card so much I made a whole bunch of them, adding some alternative sentiments - this one was using another of my Big Type Greetings Dies by Kristina Werner:

I like this version because you can see even more of that fabulous paper! I am linking today's card up with the lovely ladies over at Just Add Ink where they are looking for stencils, dies or both on their cards this week - for me it's just dies today, but great word dies nevertheless!

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 have been taking a break from the craft room re-occupation over the last few days as I have been enjoying the company of James Junior, who has been home from university for the weekend. We will be heading back for his last stint before Christmas this afternoon, with him fed, watered and a fully laundered and ironed wardrobe of clothing - can't be bad! I'll be back in a couple of days with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

TRADITIONS OF CHRISTMAS 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) SPECIALTY DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£16.00)

WORDS FOR THE SEASON DIES (ENGLISH) (£30.00)

GOLD FOIL SHEETS (£4.75)

POOL PARTY A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)

SECRET SEA A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)

Today I have a second post for you as I was lucky enough to win recently over at Colour Hues (you can see my winning card here if you missed it) so I am thrilled to have been invited to be their guest designer for their latest challenge:

It's Nancy's turn to host and she has a gorgeous colour combo to work with:

Teal and silver - beautiful, right? With this colour combo, I had to create something for Christmas - so I grabbed the sketch over at Hand Stamped Sentiments 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 decided to go full-on shimmer and shine with today's card and chose retired Bermuda Bay as my teal colour. I pulled out both foil and glimmer paper in both teal and silver, and a little white glimmer paper too, then layered up a couple of Christmas baubles using the retired Delicate Baubles dies. I backed these with a piece of Oh So Ombre paper in Bermuda Bay overlaid with the Feels Like Frost silver and white pine-patterned paper. This card is just so full of sparkle:

I didn't need to add a sentiment as one of my baubles included one, so added a snowflake embellishment with some silver twine, more glimmer and sequins and a few coloured pearls to finish. I don't usually use colour as a starting point for a card, so this is always more of a challenge to me but I just LOVE the finished result so thank you Nancy for the colour inspiration!

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

Today it's Sunday and time for this week's new challenge over at The Paper Players! It's the turn of the fabulous Stef to host this week and she has a fun clean and simple challenge for us to work with:

Our favourite holiday image! I decided my card had to feature something that we truly associate with Christmas time so I grabbed Verena's fabulous sketch over at Freshly Made Sketches and an old favourite and set to work. Take a look at my finished card:

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

There were a few iconic images I could have used on today's card, but the one person who we definitely associate with Christmas time is Santa Claus - or Father Christmas, as he's more commonly known here in the UK. I have a few retired stamp sets featuring jolly St. Nick, but I settled on the Signs of Santa bundle and the coordinating Santa's Workshop specialty designer series paper. I stamped my sentiment and added a border using candy cane striped paper and cropped a Santa reading someone's wish list direct from the paper using the Santa's Signpost Framelits Dies:

I added a little shading beneath his feet to ground him and tied my card with some white baker's twine for a little extra detail, but then left it at that. The nice thing about this paper is that the white stripes of the candy cane pattern, and the brim and pompom of santa's hat are flocked with white velvet paper - difficult to see from the photos, but this adds a nice subtle touch of texture to an otherwise super clean and simple card. 

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 back later with another project for you - yes, this is a bumper Two Post Sunday! Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£16.00)

BAKER'S TWINE ESSENTIALS PACK (£10.25)

TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (£7.50)

Today it's Sunday and time for this week's new challenge over at The Paper Players! It's the turn of the fabulous Jan to host this week and she has a seasonal colour challenge for us to work with:

The minute I saw these colours, I knew I wanted to have another go at a coloured embossed sunflower card. Take a look at my finished card:

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

3D Embossed Sunflowers - I have been looking for a good colour combination to try another card using this embossing folder and Jan's chosen palette was perfect! This embossing folder looks lovely both on the embossed and debossed sides (I used the debossed side again on today's card) and it really is a huge folder too; here's my piece before I cut it down to make my card and even this isn't the whole of the folder:

Another Colouring Technique - I used a similar technique to my previous two-colour card using this embossing folder (you can see that card here if you missed it), but this time I coloured the various elements of the debossed design with my Stampin' Blends in the challenge colours, with Cajun Craze petals, Old Olive leaves and Mossy Meadow stems. Once coloured, I dragged my Early Espresso ink pad across the entire cardfront to bring out the relief of the design before trimming to size.

Words Of The Season - I featured a stacked sentiment with a drop shadow using the Words For The Season Dies - these sunflowers are perfect for Autumn in this colourway: 

I added a trio of bronze sequins to the front of my card then a co-ordinating sentiment to the inside my my card, along with a border from one of the offcuts of the front panel to finish:

This embossing folder really does make a card all on it's one I think.

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 back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

SUNFLOWER 3D EMBOSSING FOLDER (£11.25)	WORDS FOR THE SEASON DIES (ENGLISH) (£30.00)	CAJUN CRAZE A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)	EARLY ESPRESSO A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)	BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)	EARLY ESPRESSO CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)
CAJUN CRAZE STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (£10.25)	OLD OLIVE STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (£10.25)	MOSSY MEADOW STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (£10.25)	STAMPIN’ BLENDS DEEP COMBO PACK (£10.25)

Happy Fri-yay everyone! Today I'm sharing a card that was inspired by the gorgeous colour palette over at Sunday Stamps that is definitely for my favourite holiday to celebrate - yes, that's Christmas you lovely lot over at Time Out Challenges: 

It uses another of my new stencils, the Holiday Icons stencils by Kristina Werner and Concord and 9th - take a look:

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

I used all of the Sunday Stamps colours except black on my card today, adding with my trusty blending brushes (I used retired Gumball Green as my other green that isn't shown below). I absolutely love this layering stencil, choc full of holiday images (it includes baubles - in fact, I even made mine a red one for Silke's challenge over at TicTacToe - I went down the first left hand column of ornament/red/Christmas sentiment - although my bauble did get chopped in half as I made my cards, so I hope it still counts!) and it's HUGE - meaning you can make two cards in one sitting - bonus! I paired mine with a couple of diecut sentiments from the Big Type Greetings Dies, also by Kristina Werner:

A few sparkly enamel dots were added for a finishing festive touch. Here's the second card I created with the other half of my stencil panel:

This one used another of the Big Type Greetings in the set:

Not one to waste anything unnecessarily, I also used the last piece of my stencilled panel to decorate the inside of my card:

Finally, here's a shot of both cards next to each other so that you can see how the stencil design looks 'as one' (including the whole bauble!):

Another two Christmas cards for my stash! I can't wait to use this stencil again - it makes such a fun background for this time of year.

I'm writing this post on my lunch break, before finishing off my last bit of painting before my current decorating run can be considered complete. Glad it's Friday and the end is nigh, not least because I stayed up to watch the Traitors finale and subsequent Uncloaked programme with Ed Gamble so don't feel like I'm quite firing on all cylinders today. Tomorrow 'Operation Refilling The Craft Room' commences - wish me luck! Enjoy your day and I'll be back on Sunday with another project for our new challenge over at the Paper Players. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

REAL RED CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)

POPPY PARADE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)

GARDEN GREEN CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)

COASTAL CABANA CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)

BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£16.00)

Today I'm sharing a card that was initially inspired by the colour palette at Hand Stamped Sentiments along with the 'O is for Oval and One Word Sentiment' over at the Alphabet Challenge blog, that quickly became a candidate for the current style challenge over at TGIF Challenges this week too:

The HSS colours all appear in the Traditions of Christmas designer series paper pack so I knew that would be my starting point; take a look at what I came up with:

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

I started out by fussy cutting one of the floral bouquets from the paper, then added in another for good measure, and added them to a Pool Party stitched oval base. I chose a Secret Sea patterned base panel, but decided that my bouquet needed something 'extra'; I ended up taking three wooden foliage sprigs from my stash and adding gold leaf to each of them for some textured shine and layered these in beneath my bouquets. I added a twist of gold-trimmed Cherry Cobbler satin ribbon and a large diecut sentiment, then added some flat gold enamel dots for a final flourish:

Now that's a lot of layers, with much more in the way of embellishments than I would normally go for, but sometimes more really is more, right?! I really love this finished card too - perfect for special festive wishes.

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 am late posting today; I finally embarked on emptying my craft room so that I could decorate and reorganise it. I emptied it on Sunday and have spent the last 3 days painting and decorating. A few finishing touches tomorrow, then I'm waiting for some new flooring to be fitted before sorting out the mountain of items that came out of it and restocking it with only those things I now need. My craft room is officially out of action for a little while, but I have a few projects made and ready to share with you in the coming weeks so all is not lost! Enjoy your evening and I'll hopefully be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

TRADITIONS OF CHRISTMAS 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) SPECIALTY DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£16.00)

GREETINGS FOR YOU MIX & MATCH EPHEMERA PACK (ENGLISH) (£8.00)

CHERRY COBBLER A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)

POOL PARTY A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)

SECRET SEA A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)

LOW-PROFILE DOTS (£3.50)

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:

With Thanksgiving just around the corner for our friends in the US, LeAnne's challenge is a timely one. It's always nice to send thank you cards to show our appreciation - I probably send more of this kind of card than any other. I decided that I wanted my card today to be in the spirit of Thanksgiving - take a look at what I came up with:

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

Not Pumpkin Pie - I still had 'pie' on my mind following my musings in relation to the 'harvest' prompt of Friday's card, so decided since pie is a big feature of the Thanksgiving feast (or so I am led to believe as a non native American) I dug out an old retired set called 'Sweets & Treats' for this sweet little pie image. Except I don't think this could be considered a pumpkin pie, as it has a pastry lid - and my research suggests that pumpkin pie is open-topped, more like a UK 'tart' - feel free to weigh in, American readers! So instead I decided that I would make my pie a cherry pie, cooked in my faithful Cornishware blue pie dish, with a cherry-coloured rosy hue behind:

Cherry pies have long been a feature in the James household at this time of year thanks to a dear long-time customer friend of mine who has generously shared her bounty over the years. She has now moved away to the coast, so I shall be sending this card to her as a thank you for the harvests of times gone by (thank you Gill!)

Follow The Leader - My super simple card today is inspired by Karen's card over at AAA Cards, where we are playing 'follow the leader' and invited to CASE Karen's card. I retained the CAS layout, with a single base layer and focal stamped image popped up on dimensionals, with a blend of colour behind, coupled with a punny sentiment. I'm also linking this card up over at Time Out Challenges where they are celebrating autumn festivities around the world - Thanksgiving is mine.

A Festive 'Take Two' - I liked this simple card so much, I decided to make another one to add to my Christmas stash and celebrate another festivity with another of the stamps in the 'Sweet & Treats' set: a Christmas pudding. Here's my second card:

I stuck to exactly the same design principles, but switched out the image and sentiment to feature this most delicious of Christmas treats. This stamp has a little more detail so allows for a little more colour to be incorporated - check out the jewelled candied peel and glace cherries in the mix:

I LOVE Christmas pudding (without white sauce though) and for me is a highlight of the festive season, but I think it is a peculiarly British tradition that is perhaps not shared with our overseas friends. I once visited some American friends shortly before Christmas and took one with me as a gift for them to try. Let's just say they much preferred the Terry's Chocolate Oranges I'd taken too!

Here is the visual summary of the key products used on today's project for you to pin for easy reference (the Blends colours are in the table below):

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; thank you for listening to my musings over all things pudding and pie! I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (£7.50)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£16.00)	BLENDING BRUSHES (£14.00)	CHERRY COBBLER CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)	AZURE AFTERNOON STAMPIN’ BLENDS COMBO PACK (£10.25)	STAMPIN’ BLENDS MEDIUM DEEP COMBO (£10.25)
POPPY PARADE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£8.50)	POPPY PARADE STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (£10.25)	STAMPIN’ BLENDS DEEP COMBO PACK (£10.25)	SHADED SPRUCE STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (£10.25)	TIMID TIGER STAMPIN’ BLENDS COMBO PACK (£10.25)	LEMON LOLLY STAMPIN’ BLENDS COMBO PACK (£10.25)
LEMON LIME TWIST STAMPIN’ BLENDS COMBO PACK (£10.25)