It's a wet and miserable day here in the UK but I've been to the gym and am raring to go! Today I'm sharing a card that was inspired by a couple of challenges: 

That mood board at Just Us Girls looked so inviting and actually was just what I needed to help me with the current SUO Challenges CASE The Catalogue Challenge - take a look at what I came up with and I'll explain all:

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

I've had this Cable Knit embossing folder for ages, but I rarely use it - that inspo photo at Just Us Girls gave me the perfect opportunity though to make it the main base for my card - isn't it great? I inked up one of the leaves in the retired Gorgeous Leaves bundle with a mix of warm yellows and browns to tuck in behind my mug - and I even managed to find a stamp with a 'Boo' and a tiny ghost (from the retired Thinking Thanks & Peace stamp set) to decorate the aperture on the mug:

I also took the opportunity to CASE the card on the left of the SUO Challenge photo.  I focused on the layout and the various elements: an embossed background, a panel of DSP and a banner with ribbon trim, along with two elements and a sentiment on a circle tucked behind - I actually used one of the stamps in the retired 'Warm Hugs' stamp set which complements the overall theme of my card. Finally a sprinkle of enamel dots complete my cosy card.

Another of those cards that makes the most of retired bits and pieces and not quite my usual style, but it was fun to make for sure.

Enjoy your day; I am meeting one of my besties for coffee this afternoon - we haven't see each other for a few months, so have lots to catch up on - then I'm off to the theatre tonight to see the comedian Sir Lenny Henry, which will I'm sure be a show full of laughs! I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

I managed to get a little crafty time this afternoon so today I have a quick post to share a card I made using Kim's layout over at Freshly Made Sketches and the warm orange and yellow tones and sunflowers in the Hand Stamped Sentiments inspiration photo:

Here's my card:

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

I used a retired Mango Melody card base for a warm orange-yellow tone, added a square cut with my Stylish Shapes Dies and added a stamped and coloured little gnome dressed as a bee from the 'Buzzing With Happiness' stamp set by My Favourite Things, that I picked up recently in a sale. My nephew is a bee-keeper in his spare time and although this card is not destined for him, he is the reason I have acquired quite the collection of bee-related stamps! I added a strip of retired plaid paper that brought the yellows and oranges together and before I glued all of my pieces, I decided to add a panel embossed with the 3D Sunflowers embossing folder to my card base as it was looking a little plain - and I love the finished result! Here's a close up of my bee-gnome, clutching the single sunflower that inspired my embossed panel:

 Isn't he a cutie? And those sunflowers - they never fail to impress, they add so much detail and interest. I love Kim's sketch too; I've already used this for another upcoming card - it's a keeper for sure!

That's all from me; enjoy your evening and I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

SUNFLOWER 3D EMBOSSING FOLDER (£11.25)

STYLISH SHAPES DIES (£28.00)

BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)

It's Tuesday and time for a new challenge over at CAS Colours & Sketches. Rachel is hosting the next 2 challenges and our second challenge this month is a colour challenge: 

These colours are quite spring-like, which is perfectly fitting for Rachel's part of the world. For my card today I grabbed a set that I recently picked up in a stamp sale, along with the 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:

This sweet little gnome comes from a My Favourite Things stamp set called 'Sunflower Gnomes'. There are two other stamps in the set featuring sunflowers, but in this one the gnome is holding a chrysanthemum I think. I coloured my gnome with my Highland Heather Blends and used the Bubble Bath and Peaceful Pine for my flower. I think there are dies to cut out these gnomes but I don't have them so I got fussy cutting! For the circle element of the sketch, I used a stencil and my blending brushes to add both Highland Heather and Bubble Bath ink in a blended circle as a background of sorts to ground my gnome and I flicked it with water before adding my gnome and sentiment to add a speckled effect for interest behind:

A simple banner sentiment finished my card. I sometimes struggle to create cards that are truly 'clean and simple' that are something more that just an image and sentiment, so I really like the blended circle on this one as a way to add interest. Great sketch inspiration from the team at Sunday Stamps as always!

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:

BLENDING BRUSHES (£16.00)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£16.00)	BUBBLE BATH CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£10.25)	BUBBLE BATH STAMPIN’ BLENDS COMBO PACK (£11.25)	HIGHLAND HEATHER CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£10.25)	HIGHLAND HEATHER STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (£11.25)
PEACEFUL PINE STAMPIN’ BLENDS COMBO PACK (£11.25)	STYLISH SHAPES DIES (£28.00)

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

Going to the beach - how fun! Given that the beach is all about sand and sea, I knew today's card was going to have to feature both. How to keep this clean and simple though? I decided that a three square layout was the answer. Take a look at what I came up with:

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

Using a Crumb Cake base, I layered on some Azure Afternoon waves and white sea foam using the Rolling Waves Dies, then used a square Stylish Shapes Dies to diecut three squares from it, just to add interest to the layout and design. A simple sentiment from 'Splash & Relax' anchored by a pair of pink dotty flip flops complete my clean and simple card:

Lots of 'white' space and minimal layers and embellishments - clean and simple, done! I'm also linking today's card up over at Time Out where the current challenge theme is 'water'.

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 going to enjoy a BBQ lunch and I'm hoping to fit in a little baking too, but otherwise taking things easy. I'll be back shortly with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

ROLLING WAVES BUNDLE (ENGLISH) (£48.50)	SPLASH & RELAX BUNDLE (£42.25)	STYLISH SHAPES DIES (£28.00)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£16.00)	BASIC BLACK HYBRID STAMPIN' PAD (£11.25)	AZURE AFTERNOON A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)
CRUMB CAKE A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)	CRUMB CAKE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£10.25)	MELON MAMBO A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)	FLIRTY FLAMINGO A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)

Today is a special day! Following my recent win over at Color Hues with the Pink and Turquoise colour combo (you can see that card here if you missed it), I am Guest Designer for their new challenge starting today and there is a striking colour combo to play with: 

Black and red - lots of possibilities with this combo, right? When I cleared out my craft room a few months ago I discovered a pack of Peaceful Poppies Elements collage pieces from an absolute age ago that was unopened - so today's challenge gave me an opportunity to remedy that. Take a look at what I came up with:

 Here's the low-down on today's card:

Poppies always make me think of remembrance, so they are the perfect image for a sympathy or thinking of you card. I created a frame using some Real Red cardstock and a square Stylish Shapes Die, and filled it with some heat-embossed vellum poppies that I colour red with my Stampin' Blends markers and a watercolour poppy element, then added another poppy accent to my stamped sentiment and added some black thread, sequins and an offcut of black and white paper for a little added decoration:

Some simple layering of a few well-chosen bits and pieces bring together my black and red card. Do pop by the Color Hues blog and check out what the rest of the design team have created with this colour combo; how does this colour combo inspire you?

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

STYLISH SHAPES DIES (£28.00)

WORDS OF BEAUTY BUNDLE (ENGLISH) (£43.00)

BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)

REAL RED A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)

BASIC BLACK A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)

BASIC BLACK HYBRID STAMPIN' PAD (£11.25)

It's Tuesday and time for a new challenge over at CAS Colours & Sketches. I am hosting this month and our first challenge is a sketch challenge, with a layered cluster of images in the opposing corner to the sentiment: 

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

For my card today I took my inspiration from the photo over at Inkspirational and raided my scraps box  for the bits and pieces I needed to make my card. Take a look:

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

I knew I wanted the drinks beaker from Splash & Relax as my focal point, but wanted to incorporate the lemons and florals too. Some snippets of Best Dressed and Tea Boutique DSP, along with a banner in yellow and a stamped lemon slice (ret. Cute Fruit) gave me my other elements, which I balanced with a trio of enamel dots and a sentiment from the retired Sweet Citrus stamp set:

It's fun to layer lots of small pieces together in this way and whilst there is more than I would usually include on a CAS card, all of the detail is concentrated in one area leaving lots of open white space to keep the clean and simple feel. It's also a great way to use up scraps and bits and pieces left over from other projects. Please excuse today's photos; I was struggling with the super bright sunshine when I took them and there are a few light spots I didn't see on first glance and I didn't have time to retake them.

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 am actually driving to Oxford today to have lunch with my CAS Colours & Sketches teamie Rachel who is currently visiting the UK on vacation, so that will be fun! I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

SPLASH & RELAX BUNDLE (£42.25)

STYLISH SHAPES DIES (£28.00)

PETAL PINK A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)

CRUSHED CURRY A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)

GARDEN GREEN CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£10.25)

BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£16.00)

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

I wasn't quite sure where to go with Ann's theme this week, so I started with a browse of my stamp set shelf for inspiration. I saw this quote and that's where this week's project began - take a look:

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

Enjoy Life - The quote is featured in the retired 'Enjoy Life' stamp set and whilst not about romantic love per se, I thought that it would make a lovely centrepiece for a summer-inspired project. I stamped it onto white cardstock and diecut using my Nested Essentials Dies.

New Horizons - I leafed through my (extensive) designer series paper collection and found this lovely sunny landscape in the retired New Horizons pack that worked perfectly for my background.

It's In The Detail - Trying to decide how to bring my chosen quote and paper together, I happened upon the Inspired By Challenge inspiration this week and finally had the answer! Not the beachy theme, the colour scheme or the cookies - but the sketch layout. I decided to take some of the other stamps from the 'Enjoy Life' stamp set and stamp them in black onto an identical piece of designer paper to the one I was using for my background, cutting them out with my square Stylish Shapes Dies. I popped the diecut pieces up on dimensionals to add interest to the landscape and frame the quote in an interesting way:

I used the whole of the 6x6" sheet of DSP and decided I liked it so much that I would frame it and hang it on the wall of my craft room, which I recently painted in a sunny shade of yellow. Here's the finished piece in its frame:

Whilst my project does not embody romantic love, there is a definite nod to summer and a love of life, so I'm hoping Ann thinks I'm close enough to what she was looking for to meet the brief ;-).

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 will be enjoying a BBQ lunch in the summer sun and just pottering around the house today. I am still aching from Friday's strenuous gym session and paddleboarding excursion combined, so I need to rest in order to do it all again next week! We are forecast a third heatwave here this week, so I am trying to make the most of the reasonable temperatures before it's too hot to move. Besides, there will also be tennis at Wimbledon so if that's not an excuse to watch the TV, I'm not sure what is! I'll be back soon with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

STYLISH SHAPES DIES (£28.00)

NESTED ESSENTIALS DIES (£32.00)

BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£16.00)

BASIC BLACK HYBRID STAMPIN' PAD (£11.25)

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 fun clean and simple challenge for us to work with:

I am all about the sunshine so I wanted to reflect that in my card today - take a look:

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

I created my rays by stamping the sunray stamp from the Joyful Squares stamp set twice and added my sentiment from Splash & Relax in Azure Afternoon to a diecut circle, embellished with a pair of cool sunnies for good measure: 

And that's it - super simple, super fun! If you haven't given Joyful Squares a second look, you can still pick it up for a song on the last chance section of the online store - such a great stamp for scrapbooking and cardmaking alike.

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 am arriving back from a two week vacation in the USA today and hoping to bring the sunshine with me! I'll be back later in the week with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

SPLASH & RELAX BUNDLE (£42.25)	JOYFUL SQUARES PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£13.80)	STYLISH SHAPES DIES (£28.00)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£16.00)	BASIC BLACK A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)	MELON MAMBO A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)
DAFFODIL DELIGHT CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£10.25)	AZURE AFTERNOON CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£10.25)

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 my favourite, a sketch challenge, for us to work with:

I really like this sketch - the eagle-eyed amongst you will have noticed I used this layout for the speed stamping card I made on Friday (you can see that card here if you missed it)  and I have another card later this week that uses it too. On each of these cards, I've tried to use the panels in different ways. For today's card, I'm using some cute retired Cute As A Bug designer paper and one of my favourite dies for that rectangular panel - take a look:

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

I decided to add a piece of DSP featuring tiny flowers to the front of my card (this is one of the Cute As A Bug patterns); this allowed me to make a feature of the rectangular panel with the circles panel diecut from the Lovely Arrangements bundle. I added a stitched circle as the base for my fussy-cut insect carrying her flower and paired her with a sentiment from the Lovel Arrangements bundle too:

A heart and a couple of enamel flowers from my stash were the finishing touches for this otherwise quite simple card. I was enjoying fussy cutting whilst I had this pack of paper out on my desk, so took the opportunity to make a second card using it too - I'll share that one with you tomorrow. This really is a great sketch - I can't wait to see what you all make with is 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; it's a Bank Holiday weekend here in the UK and for once the sun is shining and it's glorious! I will be spending my day in the garden, reading and soaking up the beautiful weather whilst it lasts! I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

LOVELY ARRANGEMENTS BUNDLE (ENGLISH) (£45.75)

STYLISH SHAPES DIES (£28.00)

BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)

MOSSY MEADOW A4 CARDSTOCK (£14.00)

MOSSY MEADOW CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£10.25)

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