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:

I normally struggle with recipe challenges, but this one came together really easily, especially with the layout over at Atlantic Hearts this week - take a look:

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

My starting point for today's card was the Storybook Gnomes designer series paper, and specifically the pattern that I used for the rectangular panels at the back that you can barely see on the finished card! It has a lovely mix of blues and earth tones, so ticked off two of my ingredients. Having layered these panels, I decided to build a scene using a combination of stamped diecut elements (my toadstool - check) and some other elements I'd already cut out from other patterns in this pack, namely the moose and the gnome. I added in a precut snowflake and some smaller snowflakes cut with the Chic Dies, to which I added some glittery gems - even a masculine card can have a little sparkle, right?!

I added a panel with my stamped sentiment and wrapped this in some (retired) white and Early Espresso baker's twine (check) to continue the earthy tones and tick off my final ingredient. 

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. 

This is one of those cards that just evolved with a mish-mash of bits and pieces until I felt like I had a cohesive scene. I think I'll send this to an old university friend who has an adorable little boy - I think Mr Gnome will be right up his street!

Here's a summary of our challenge rules:

• Create any card, scrapbooking page, 3D project or packaging project that fits the challenge.
• Please include the challenge graphic and link back to the challenge in your blog post. Turn off word verification so we can leave you lots of lovely comments. Make sure you link the post not the whole blog to the Linky. Use #AYSIXXX when uploading to a public gallery.
• If you’re unsure about ‘the rules’, check the details under the Challenge Guidelines tab on the As You See It Challenge homepage.

Enjoy your day; I have a helper to complete my chores today as the oldest of the James Juniors is enjoying an extended half-term break. Keep your fingers crossed that the weather stays dry this evening please as we are off to a fireworks display at the school of James Junior number 2. It is usually a fantastic display and as it's within the school grounds, far enough away from residential housing to cause undue trauma to the neighbourhood cats and dogs. I'll be back on Sunday with my project for our new challenge over at The Paper Players. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

KINDEST GNOMES BUNDLE (ENGLISH) (46.75)	STITCHED RECTANGLE DIES (33.00)	CHIC DIES (35.00)	STORYBOOK GNOMES 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (11.25)	FINE SPARKLE ADHESIVE BACKED GEMS (7.00)	WONDERFUL SNOWFLAKES (5.75)
ELEGANT FACETED GEMS (7.00)	BALMY BLUE A4 CARDSTOCK (8.75)	BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (9.75)	SOFT SUEDE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (7.50)	NIGHT OF NAVY CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (7.50)

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

I used Jacqui's sketch over at Freshly Made Sketches for my layout this week - can you guess how I filled in the blank? Here's my card:

 Here's the low-down on today's card:

For Me The Spookiest Thing on Halloween Is Always - .. the fact that there are even more spiders than usual! I'm all for appreciating all creatures great and small, but I draw the line at spiders and wasps! I've been stung by a wasp on three separate occasions - each of them memorable and none of them pleasant and as for spiders, well they just give me the heebie-jeebies, especially furry ones or ones with the long, spindly legs!! So today's card had to feature spiders! It actually started with the stamped one, which comes from the Cottage Wreaths stamp set. Ironically, one of the reasons I bought this set was for the spider and the 'boo' greeting, as it allowed for versatility given that I didn't want to buy lots of Halloween sets but I honestly haven't been able to bring myself to create a Halloween wreath featuring this particular arachnid - every time I go to visit another blog to leave a comment and I see this spider featured on a card, it literally makes my skin creep!

I decided to pair both the spider and greeting with some (retired - Happy Hauntings) designer paper squares, also featuring a similar spider, and create a simple feature where this one looks like he's escaping the paper via his 'web' line of pierced dots courtesy of my Take Your Pick Tool. I also added an embossed spider's web to the black mat layer, although this is difficult to see in the photos and I embossed the envelope flap too for additional spooky effect. Against my better judgement, here's a close-up of the escapee:

Whilst I actually like the finished card, I have absolutely no idea who to send it too - does anyone out there actually like spiders?! Answers below please - I will happily send this card your way! I am also going to share the loveliness of today's Halloween creation with the ladies over at SUO Challenges where they are all about Halloween for a second entry.

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

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

Here's a summary of our challenge rules:

• Create any card, scrapbooking page, 3D project or packaging project that fits the challenge.
• Please include the challenge graphic and link back to the challenge in your blog post. Turn off word verification so we can leave you lots of lovely comments. Make sure you link the post not the whole blog to the Linky. Use #AYSIXXX when uploading to a public gallery.
• If you’re unsure about ‘the rules’, check the details under the Challenge Guidelines tab on the As You See It Challenge homepage.
• In a Fill in the Blank challenge, complete the sentence in the Challenge Banner with the phrase that is true for you and create your project using the words you used. Tell us what you said in your blog or on your site.

Enjoy your day - it's Friday so my cleaning day and the housework beckons - off to do battle with the real-life spiders and their cobwebs, which are always more prevalent at this time of year as they come indoors to escape the chillier autumn weather. Wish me luck! I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

COTTAGE WREATHS PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£18.00)

STYLISH SHAPES DIES (£28.00)

TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (£5.75)

VERY VANILLA A4 CARDSTOCK (£9.75)

BASIC BLACK A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)

TAKE YOUR PICK (£9.50)

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

I love this week's colour palette, although the bold colours did mean I had to get my thinking cap on. I decided they would be perfect for me to try out an idea I've had buzzing around for a while - take a look:

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

Simply Fabulous - I've made no secret of how much I love the 'Simply fabulous' stamp set - to me, it is just that! So versatile, with great sentiments and fonts and bold floral images, if you do a search you'll find lots of examples of where I've used it on other cards. Instead of stamping in colour, I wanted to see what it would look like stamped in black onto a coloured base. The images are small and easy to combine and the subtle leaf detail on some of the images mean this works really well. I used my Stamparatus to stamp clusters of images at a time, reinking to make sure I had a nice solid black image. I also added a little additional detail on the inside:

DIY Stencils - I decided that I would use some circle shapes to highlight my clusters of silhouetted images and use a combination of blended colours in each one. I made my own set of circle stencils, using some window sheet and my Layering Circles Dies, so carefully positioned them where I wanted my images, starting with the large ones and adding a few smaller ones around the edge to fill in the gaps. I used my blending brushes to add a combination of two colours to each circle. I love using stencils and don't have many in my collection, but I'm always looking at ways in which I can use my dies to create custom stencils - do you do this too? My stencilling here is simple but I think quite effective; I'm linking up with the challenge over at Inkspirational where they are asking us to use stencils this week - do check out the DT and gallery cards, there are some great examples of the way stencils can be used on your projects.

Finishing Touches - To finish my card, I added a few matte black dots to the outer borders of the larger circles as an accent:

I really love this card and am glad I used a slimline design too as it meant I got more circles onto my card front. If I could change one thing, I think I would stamp my sentiment in black rather than Starry Sky; I wanted to tie it in to the mat layer, but I think black would have given a crisper finish. I'll save that for my next one! 

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

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

Here's a summary of our challenge rules:

• Create any card, scrapbooking page, 3D project or packaging project that fits the challenge.
• Please include the challenge graphic and link back to the challenge in your blog post. Turn off word verification so we can leave you lots of lovely comments. Make sure you link the post not the whole blog to the Linky. Use #AYSIXXX when uploading to a public gallery.
• If you’re unsure about ‘the rules’, check the details under the Challenge Guidelines tab on the As You See It Challenge homepage.
• In a colour challenge, black or other neutral can be used in outlines and sentiments but no other colours should be included. Stampin’ Up colours are used for reference but colours that are a close match are welcome.

Enjoy your day. Mine will be filled with laundry and housework and maybe a little crafting! I am on late pickup this evening, as one of the James Juniors has a social evening and quiz night at school, which after this morning's rush hour I am particularly thankful for: a beer tanker had overturned and completely blocked the dual carriageway that is only minutes into our journey, necessitating a massive diversion and delay - not what you need when you have a 60 mile round trip to embark on at 7.15am! Still, everyone got to school on time and I'm thankful we weren't involved in the incident itself, so all good. I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

SIMPLY FABULOUS PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£17.00)	LAYERING CIRCLES DIES (£33.00)	MATTE BLACK DOTS (£6.75)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	STARRY SKY A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)	BLENDING BRUSHES (£11.75)	STARRY SKY CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)
PARAKEET PARTY CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	MANGO MELODY CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (£5.75)

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

I love a good sketch, but I don't mind admitting this week's card was a struggle! Too little craft time and a chaotic craft room are not a good mix, so with my card making deadline looming, I was feeling the pressure. A few failed attempts and I decided therefore that simple would be best. I had seen the inspiration photo earlier in the day over at The Card Concept (there are actually two now for their second challenge of the month - fun!) and whilst I wasn't inspired by the travel theme, I loved their first inspo photo of brightly coloured stylised prints and the one for Bali was the inspiration for my card design today. The bold colours on a dramatic black background with bright pink floral accents led me to grab another of the designs in the 'Celebrate Everything' designer series paper pack and pull together a simple clean and layered Christmas card - take a look:

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

I cut a panel of this brightly patterned paper, double mounted it onto Polished Pink and Shaded Spruce, and added it to a Basic Black cardbase. I added a sentiment from the 'Candy Canes Christmas' stamp set that seemed to fit this bold, fun design and accented it with a couple of diecut holly leaves (taken from the retired Poinsettia Dies, as they were just the right shape and style). I added some detail to the embossed lines with a Shaded Spruce marker to echo the holly design on the paper and finished with a trio of large red glittery enamel dot berries, taken from my stash:

So what do you think? Are you a traditionalist when it comes to Christmas colour schemes or do you like to break the mold every now and again and go with something more contemporary? I admit a black card base is not my usual Christmas card 'go to', but I think it works. I'm not sure I'm going to win any awards with this one (haha!) and the design team over at As You See It have created some AMAZING cards with this sketch, so you should definitely check those out. One thing's for sure I love the 'Celebrate Everything' designer series paper pack - this is definitely the paper that keeps on giving!

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

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

Here's a summary of our challenge rules:

• Create any card, scrapbooking page, 3D project or packaging project that fits the challenge.
• Please include the challenge graphic and link back to the challenge in your blog post. Turn off word verification so we can leave you lots of lovely comments. Make sure you link the post not the whole blog to the Linky. Use #AYSIXXX when uploading to a public gallery.
• If you’re unsure about ‘the rules’, check the details under the Challenge Guidelines tab on the As You See It Challenge homepage.
• In a sketch challenge, you are welcome to rotate or flip a sketch. You can replace shapes used such as substituting a circle panel for a square panel. However, we must be able to still see the basis of the original sketch in your finished product.

Enjoy your day; I'm off to a funeral - the wet and gloomy day definitely is reflective of that mood. I am hoping to be back in my craft room tomorrow though, so will hopefully be ready to share another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

CELEBRATE EVERYTHING 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£16.50)	SWEET CANDY CANES CLING STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£21.00)	BASIC BLACK A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)	GRANNY APPLE GREEN A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)	SHADED SPRUCE A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)	POLISHED PINK A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)
BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£9.75)

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 challenge:

Having cast my eye over my supplies, the only current pumpkin products I had was the 'Celebrate Everything' designer series paper which features this cute pumpkin/ghost patterned paper. So I had a good root through my retired box, grabbed a couple of retired stamp sets and my retired apple punch and decided to CASE a card I saw on social media yesterday by Yvonne Spikmans, one of the current Stampin' Up! artisan designers using my collection of bits and pieces. I started my stopwatch and set to work - this is what I came up with:

 Here's the low-down on today's card:

I added my DSP to a blank card base and then created a 'torn reveal' to a piece of white cardstock. I stamped a pumpkin onto some orange cardstock (Tangerine Tango - retired) using the retired 'Harvest Hellos' stamp set and punched it out with my retired apple builder punch, then added it across my torn section. The sentiment comes from the retired 'Banner Year' stamp set and I stamped the 'Boo' onto a banner that I retrieved from my box of scraps. A bundle of twine and sprinkle of enamel dots and stars complete this fun card:

This card was actually surprisingly quick to make - I remembered to photograph my finished time:

9 minutes and 27 seconds - not too shabby and nicely under the 10 minute mark - result! The key to a quick card is most definitely to be prepared: planning your card and gathering your supplies ahead of time is allowed and will definitely make things easier. 

This card will be a good surprise note for one of the James Juniors as Halloween draws nearer.

No visual summary of the key products used on today's project or supplies list as most items I've used are retired; the design could be used in lots of different ways though - what sets would you use? Do leave me a comment below - I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Here's a summary of our challenge rules:

• Create any card, scrapbooking page, 3D project or packaging project that fits the challenge.
• Please include the challenge graphic and link back to the challenge in your blog post. Turn off word verification so we can leave you lots of lovely comments. Make sure you link the post not the whole blog to the Linky. Use #AYSIXXX when uploading to a public gallery.
• If you’re unsure about ‘the rules’, check the details under the Challenge Guidelines tab on the As You See It Challenge homepage.
• In a speed stamping challenge, please time yourself and say in your post how long your card took to complete. 

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'!

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:

There were lots of things on this week's board that I loved - DSP, bright colours, dies and even florals - but I was slightly unnerved by the addition of watercolouring into the mix! I find watercolouring a little hit and miss (sometimes my attempts are a hot mess!) so I decided to play safe and watercolour my stamped florals and take it from there. Take a look at where I ended up:

 Here's the low-down on today's card:

I decided to use some of the brightly coloured Hues of Happiness DSP for my background and use this as the starting point for my card. I resisted the urge to use some of my florals diecut from another sheet in this pack and instead I stamped a whole bunch of flowers from the 'Happiness Abounds' stamp set onto Shimmery White cardstock and heat embossed them in black. Shimmery White cardstock is great for watercolouring as it's not too absorbent and so is very forgiving. I watercoloured my flowers in the same colours that featured on my background paper, and positioned them around a central diecut piece, also from the co-ordinating Blossoming Happiness Dies:

I heat embossed my sentiment onto a Stylish Shapes diecut banner, added a twine bow and my card is complete - all elements of the recipe included, phew!

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

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

Here's a summary of our challenge rules:

• Create any card, scrapbooking page, 3D project or packaging project that fits the challenge.
• Please include the challenge graphic and link back to the challenge in your blog post. Turn off word verification so we can leave you lots of lovely comments. Make sure you link the post not the whole blog to the Linky. Use #AYSIXXX when uploading to a public gallery.
• If you’re unsure about ‘the rules’, check the details under the Challenge Guidelines tab on the As You See It Challenge homepage.

Enjoy your day and I'll be back on Sunday with my project for The Paper Players. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

HAPPINESS ABOUNDS BUNDLE (ENGLISH) (£46.75)	HUES OF HAPPINESS 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£11.25)	STITCHED RECTANGLE DIES (£33.00)	STYLISH SHAPES DIES (£28.00)	WATER PAINTERS (£13.00)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£8.25)
GRANNY APPLE GREEN A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)	GRANNY APPLE GREEN CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	DAFFODIL DELIGHT CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	FLIRTY FLAMINGO CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	MELON MAMBO CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	VERSAMARK PAD (£9.00)
BASICS EMBOSSING POWDERS (£17.00)	BAKER'S TWINE ESSENTIALS PACK (£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 festive 'fill in the blank' challenge:

Today we are all about Christmas in July. I do like to get a start on Christmas cards at this time of year, but when it come to my favourite Christmas in July creation it has to be home decor and table favours; these always take longer to make than you think they will and in the busy run up to Christmas there is rarely time to devote large chunks of time to crafting, so I like to get a good headstart on these kinds of projects - it makes me feel organised! I have two projects for you today - a piece of home decor and a co-ordinating table favour. Both use the Tree Lot Dies, available free with a £90 purchase during the current Sale-A-Bration promotion - and I took the inspiration for my festive caravan and 'trees for sale' scene from the top right photo over at Hand Stamped Sentiments - what a great inspo board! First up - here's my home decoration piece:

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

I used a dome that I had in my office that I bought last year that was just waiting to be made into something, and built my little scene onto the base, having first covered the base with snowy white velvet paper (cut with a retired layering circles die). The string of lights, embellished with the pretty Festive Pearls, the trees and the 'trees for sale' sign are all one dimensional and stand with the aid of small supports behind them. The caravan is made by diecutting two of the diecut caravan pieces and adding a base (described in more detail with the table favour below) and a second curved piece of cardstock for the roof (the roof piece measures 3 1/2" x 1 1/2", scored at 1/2" on each side and 1/4" on each side respectively). I added some red ribbon to the top of my dome and red glimmer to the base of my dome for extra festive feel. Here's a close up of my little scene, with the dome removed so that you can see the detail more easily:

My finished dome measures 11cm wide by 19cm tall and that's not all - it lights up too! 

A little tricky to see since I photographed it in daylight, but a nice feature to give a cosy night time glow. In addition to my decoration, which could be used as a table centrepiece, I also created the first of a set of table favours made from the caravan die. These are quite easy to make: just cut two caravan sides, then take a piece of cardstock measuring 4 1/8" x 1 1/2", scored at 1" on each side and 1/4/" on each side respectively, to create the open box shape. They are just big enough to hold two Lindor chocolates or similar:

How cute is that?! Both of today's projects are quite easy to make, but I won't lie - there is a time-consuming element, since all of the little pieces need to be cut and glued in place. Worth it though I think - and if you start now, you will have them finished and ready to go when Christmas rolls around!

The key products used on today's project are included in the table below - no visual today. 

Here's a summary of our challenge rules:

• Create any card, scrapbooking page, 3D project or packaging project that fits the challenge.
• Please include the challenge graphic and link back to the challenge in your blog post. Turn off word verification so we can leave you lots of lovely comments. Make sure you link the post not the whole blog to the Linky. Use #AYSIXXX when uploading to a public gallery.
• If you’re unsure about ‘the rules’, check the details under the Challenge Guidelines tab on the As You See It Challenge homepage.
• In a Fill in the Blank challenge, complete the sentence in the Challenge Banner with the phrase that is true for you and create your project using the words you used. Tell us what you said in your blog or on your site.

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

TREE LOT DIES (£0.00)	TREES FOR SALE PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£21.00)	SNOWY WHITE 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) VELVET SHEETS (£4.75)	REAL RED & WHITE 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 CM) GLIMMER PAPER (£4.75)	FESTIVE PEARLS (£6.75)	REAL RED & GARDEN GREEN 3/8" (1 CM) RIBBON COMBO PACK (£7.00)
BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	REAL RED A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)	SHADED SPRUCE A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)	EARLY ESPRESSO A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)	EARLY ESPRESSO CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	BASIC BLACK A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)
SILVER FOIL 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) SPECIALTY PACK (£9.50)

Today I'm sharing my design team card for our new challenge over at As you See It where it's time for a colour challenge, with this week's colour palette chosen by me:

I loved the sky in the inspiration photo, so thought I would try and recreate it on a couple of Christmas cards. I grabbed my ink pads and blending brushes, along with some new embossing folders and this is what I came up with - take a look:

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

Charming Landscapes - Both of today's cards feature a panel embossed with each of the new Charming Landscapes embossing folders. These folders are great for adding embossed background layers to your cards, but I wanted to pair them with a bold, blended sky and make them the main feature. One includes a mountain scene, the other a village scene - I couldn't decided which one to use so having started with the village scene, I decided to create a second one using the mountain scene too:

Blended Sky - I used all four of the challenge colours to create my blended sky, starting with the lightest colour pink then progressing to the darkest blues. To pick out the snowy/starry details of the embossing across the sky, I them too a dry aquapainter and painted each of the embossed elements with some (retired) Frost White shimmer paint; if you don't have any of this, you could use a white craft re-inker or even the new pearlised enamel effects on page 59 of the seasonal catalogue. This was a time-consuming process, but so worth it to pick out the detail. I also flicked the sky with my clear Wink of Stella pen for a subtle extra sparkle:

Aren't these skies just so pretty?

Masking Magic - In order to keep my blended colour to the sky portion of my scene only, I created masks for each embossing folder, by running it through my Big Shot with some acetate window sheet and using a scissors to cut around the mountains/houses. I attached each to my white embossed cardstock and held in place before adding my ink colours, then removed when complete. These can be easily cleaned and re-used, which is a good job; I like these cards so much I can't wait to create more using different colour combinations. I added a simple sentiment from the 'Christmas To Remember' stamp set and another to the inside of my card to finish. Here are both of my cards together - which one do you prefer?

Do leave me a comment below - I'd love to hear your thoughts.

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

And the second one:

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 was a little concerned that the team wouldn't take to my choice of colours this week, but I can honestly say they've outdone themselves - you should definitely check out their cards this week. 

Here's a summary of our challenge rules:

• Create any card, scrapbooking page, 3D project or packaging project that fits the challenge.
• Please include the challenge graphic and link back to the challenge in your blog post. Turn off word verification so we can leave you lots of lovely comments. Make sure you link the post not the whole blog to the Linky. Use #AYSIXXX when uploading to a public gallery.
• If you’re unsure about ‘the rules’, check the details under the Challenge Guidelines tab on the As You See It Challenge homepage.
• In a colour challenge, black or other neutral can be used in outlines and sentiments but no other colours should be included. Stampin’ Up colours are used for reference but colours that are a close match are welcome.

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

CHARMING LANDSCAPES EMBOSSING FOLDERS (£7.50)	CHRISTMAS TO REMEMBER CLING STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£22.00)	STITCHED RECTANGLE DIES (£33.00)	STARRY SKY CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	ORCHID OASIS CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	POLISHED PINK CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)
PETAL PINK CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	BLENDING BRUSHES (£11.75)

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

Since today celebrates the launch of the new July-December mini catalogue and the start of the second Sale-A-Bration promotion of the year, I couldn't resist the opportunity to create with some new goodies! I'm not quite in the Christmas zone yet though, so decided to pair the summery colour palette over at Global Design Project #GDP349 this week and the inspiration phrase of "Fun In The Sun" over at Try Stamping On Tuesday (but not the sketch for obvious reasons) and use two of my FREE Sale-A-Bration products to create a splashy pool-inspired card featuring a trio of hip hippos - take a look:

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

Hippest Hippos - So how adorable are these hippos??! The stamp set contains 4 sentiments and a trio of hippos in a variety of poses - and the co-ordinating Hippos Dies extend the versatility of these semi-aquatic mammals further with the inclusion of a boat, bath tub and lots of accessories too. I 'dressed' my hippos in sunglasses, a snorkel and mask and cleverly adapted the ballet dancer in the set by adding an inflatable rubber ring that I made out of a retired stitched oval die to create a trio that are ready for some water-based fun.  

A Trio Of Dies - In addition to using the Sale-A-Bration Hippos Dies to cut out the hippos and their accessories, I also used the 'waves' die in the set for some partial diecutting to create the base for my stitched circle apertures that I wanted my hippos to sit in. The circles were diecut using the Stylish Shapes Dies and my panel cut using the Rectangle Stitched Dies. I like the way you can see the wave impressions beneath the die on the solid coloured cardstock, but the Tahitian Tide In-Color DSP beneath peaks through, a little like the sparkle of light on water. I added some splashes cut from this paper to my top layer, but I think they get a little lost - I think if I did them again I might use some in-color glimmer paper; what do you think?

Watercolour Pencil Wonder - I stamped my hippos directly onto Grey Granite cardstock, then added highlights and shading using my watercolour pencils, blended out with a blending pen. This is quite a neat way to use watercolour pencils and is a great way to add a little depth to your image without having to do lots of colouring. Did you know too that July is National Watercolour Month? Watercolouring can take lots of forms besides the traditional 'brush, water and paint' method. I look forward to sharing more watercolouring tips and tricks during the coming month. 

Both the 'Hippest Hippos' stamp set and the Hippo Dies can be yours FREE with a purchase of £45 (you will need two £45 purchases to get both items - they can be purchased separately). To get yours just click on the links to the online store below and place your order - you know you want to!!

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

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

Here's a summary of our challenge rules:

• Create any card, scrapbooking page, 3D project or packaging project that fits the challenge.
• Please include the challenge graphic and link back to the challenge in your blog post. Turn off word verification so we can leave you lots of lovely comments. Make sure you link the post not the whole blog to the Linky. Use #AYSIXXX when uploading to a public gallery.
• If you’re unsure about ‘the rules’, check the details under the Challenge Guidelines tab on the As You See It Challenge homepage.
• In a sketch challenge, you are welcome to rotate or flip a sketch. You can replace shapes used such as substituting a circle panel for a square panel. However, we must be able to still see the basis of the original sketch in your finished product.

Enjoy your day and I'll be back on Sunday with my card for our new theme challenge over at The Paper Players. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

HIPPEST HIPPOS CLING STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£0.00)	HIPPO DIES (£0.00)	2022–2024 IN COLOR™ 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£11.25)	STITCHED RECTANGLE DIES (£33.00)	STYLISH SHAPES DIES (£28.00)	WATERCOLOR PENCILS (£15.00)
PARAKEET PARTY A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)	TAHITIAN TIDE A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)	DAFFODIL DELIGHT A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)	GRAY GRANITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)	TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (£5.75)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£8.25)

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

I chose this theme; I can't be the only cardmaker who sometimes realises I'm late, late ... for a very important date, right?! Sometimes the realisation that you need a birthday card super quickly since it should have been received yesterday means speed is of the essence. I have several retired stamp sets that I've kept that are perfect for belated birthday cards; I thought I'd combine one of these with a trio of colours from the Sunday Stamps palette and a sneak peek of a brand new set that can be yours as part of the Sale-A-Bration promotion that runs from 1st July-31st August - take a look:

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

The key to a speed challenge is preparation - here's all of my equipment gathered before I started, with my stamp pads open in front of me just out of shot:

I used a combination of layer sizes that I always keep precut to save time and odd scraps from my card box.

Oops! - The stamped sentiments on today's card are from a new set called 'Amazing Phrasing' - free with a £90 purchase during Sale-A-Bration. The set is photopolymer, so really easy to line up without a Stamparatus, which saves time - good when you don't have much of it! 

Simple Layout - My layout is actually cased from a similar card that features in the Sale-A-Bration brochure. Simple layers, cut with a trimmer - no dies required! An added layer of vellum helps soften the stamped background and create focus to the main image:

Slowly Does It - I combined this new set with my trusty retired 'Turtle Friends' set and added a simple stamped and punched turtle to the front of my card and carried through the belated theme to the inside of my card with another stamp from this set:

Is my stamping perfect? No; my turtle shell is a little smudged, but I didn't want to redo because of the time constraint but I think it's ok for a speed challenge. And done! How long did it take? I used all of my allotted 10 minutes - I was coming in at about 8 and a half minutes so decided to stamp and fussy cut a party hat for my turtle 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 project or packaging project that fits the challenge.
• Please include the challenge graphic and link back to the challenge in your blog post. Turn off word verification so we can leave you lots of lovely comments. Make sure you link the post not the whole blog to the Linky. Use #AYSIXXX when uploading to a public gallery.
• If you’re unsure about ‘the rules’, check the details under the Challenge Guidelines tab on the As You See It Challenge homepage.
• In a speed stamping challenge, please time yourself and say in your post how long your card took to complete. 

Enjoy your day; I am spending the day in Bath today; no post from me tomorrow as I'm off to Warwick but I'll be back on Sunday with my project for our new challenge over at The Paper Players. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

SWEET SORBET CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	HIGHLAND HEATHER CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	GORGEOUS GRAPE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	VELLUM A4 CARDSTOCK (£9.50)	PEAR PIZZAZZ A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)	HIGHLAND HEATHER A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)
TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (£5.75)	BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£9.75)