Today's second creative post is for this week's Colour Me...! card challenge where we are working with a monochromatic colour scheme of Smoky Slate:

I love this week's inspiration photo - so cute! I went with a Christmas card today, although not a snowflake or sleigh in sight:

Today's card proved difficult to photograph, but I can attest that the silver embossed berries, bow and sentiment add a lovely touch of sparkle to this monochromatic card.

Feel free to leave a comment on today's card, before hopping over to check out the amazing cards by the rest of the Colour Me...! team:

 

Wonderous Wreath Photopolymer Bundle	Embossing Buddy	Versamark Pad	Silver Stampin' Emboss Powder	Heat Tool - Uk Plug
Whisper White A4 Card Stock	Big Shot Magnetic Platform	Big Shot Die-Cut Machine	Smoky Slate Classic Stampin' Pad	Basic Gray Classic Stampin' Pad
Card Stock A4 Smoky Slate

Welcome to my first creative post of the day! Following my selection as Featured Stamper for this card using the above challenge colours over at Color Throwdown a couple of weeks ago, the lovely ladies over there have invited me to be a guest designer for this week's challenge - yay! As if that wasn't enough, just look at the lovely colours and inspiration photo we had to work with:

I had to go with something Christmassy and I found the mix of textures in the inspiration photo provided me with the starting point for my card. So this is what I came up with:

I used Whisper White for my base and layered this with a mat of Early Espresso, then another piece of Whisper White, having first embossed this piece with my On Point embossing folder. I then created a little 'corner collage', comprising some gold striped vellum, a piece of tree-patterned DSP from the 'Trim The Tree' stack, a gold and snaller silver foil starburst circle, and then two Christmas trees - one stamped in Versamark and heat embossed in gold on Early Espresso cardstock and the other stamped in Early Espresso on Whisper White, with the baubles heat embossed in gold and a few silver rhinestones added for extra sparkle. A couple of silver glimmer paper stars top the trees and I looped some silver thread removed from some silver baker's twine behind them. To finish, I stamped my sentiment in between the embossed area in Early Espresso and Versamark heat embossed in gold. Collage-style cards are not my usual thing, but I must confess I enjoyed getting slightly carried away with this card and am really pleased with the result.

Do pop over to the Color Throwdown blog to see what the other designers have created using this colour palette; these ladies do a great job each week and would I'm sure appreciate your visit. I for one will be stalking the gallery with interest!

Back shortly with today's third post! Until the, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Embossing Buddy	Versamark Pad	Heat Tool - Uk Plug	Gold Stampin' Emboss Powder	Whisper White A4 Card Stock
Gold Foil Sheets	On Point Textured Impressions Embossing Folders	Trim The Tree Designer Series Paper Stack	Festival Of Trees Photopolymer Bundle	Basic Rhinestones Jewel Accents
Gold Fancy Foil Designer Vellum	Silver Fancy Foil Designer Vellum	Silver Glimmer Paper	Early Espresso Classic Stampin' Pad	Early Espresso A4 Card Stock
Starburst Framelits Dies	Big Shot Magnetic Platform	Big Shot Die-Cut Machine	Silver Baker's Twine

Today's card is for this week's Colour Me...! card challenge where we have are working with a playful palette of pinks and purples with a spot of Coastal Cabana:

I took the opportunity to ink up my Amazing Birthday stamp set for the first time. This was one of the sets I received free at Stampin' Up! Convention in Brussels this year and it was really tough not to buy it before I went, as I think it's a really versatile stamp that will get lots of use. Here's today's card:

I used Elegant Eggplant for my card base, then mounted a panel of Perfect Plum that I had dry embossed with the large polka dot embossing folder. I tied some thick Coastal Cabana baker's twine around the embossed panel before adhering to my card base. I stamped the main image in Elegant Eggplant on Whisper White, but also stamped it separately in Rose Red and Costal Cabana and fussy cut a couple of panels and overlaid them onto my main panel to add a pop of colour. To finish, I added a couple of rhinestones to my main panel which I first coloured wit my Coastal Cabana Blendabilities and a trio of Rose Red candy dots to the embossed panel. 

This card could be made in lots of different colourways and would make a great 'storecupboard standby' that works for both male and female. As someone who is a big fan of purple though, this colour combination really works for me. I might have to go and make a few more! 

Feel free to leave a comment on today's card, before hopping over to check out the amazing cards by the rest of the Colour Me...! team:

Big Shot Die-Cut Machine	Polka Dot Textured Impressions Embossing Folder	Amazing Birthday Clear-Mount Stamp Set	Elegant Eggplant Classic Stampin' Pad	Elegant Eggplant A4 Card Stock
Perfect Plum A4 Card Stock	Whisper White A4 Card Stock	Rose Red Classic Stampin' Pad	Regals Candy Dots	Coastal Cabana Classic Stampin' Pad
Coastal Cabana Thick Baker's Twine	Stampin' Blendabilities™ Markers Coastal Cabana Assortment	Basic Rhinestones Jewel Accents

Today's card is for this week's Colour Me...! card challenge where we have are working with a subtle palette of autumnal browns:

I also decided to use the rather unusual sketch layout over at Create With Connie and Mary for my card this week. Here is my card:

I used Soft Suede as my card base and layered a piece of paper from the Trim The Tree DSP stack at an angle across the bottom of the card. For the main image, I used the tree from the Nuts About You hostess set and having inked it up with my Soft Suede and Cajun Craze Stampin' Up! markers, stamped in out onto very Vanilla cardstock and partially cut out using my circle framelits, fussy cutting the leaves so that they would overhang the edge of the circle. I deliberately created a streaky finish on the tree truck to make it look a little bit like tree bark. I stamped both the sentiment and little creature (is it a possum? I'm really not sure what he's supposed to be, but he's cute all the same!) in Versamark and heat embossed them with Early Espresso embossing powder. I fussy cut the animal and adhered him over the tree so that he looked like he was 'hanging in there'. I finished with some strips of Early Espresso and a piece of retired Early Espresso taffeta ribbon to complete my card.

I made this card for a female friend who is having a tough time of it recently and I wanted to send her a little something to brighten her day and just let her know I was thinking of her. I really liked the finished card, then I read on a blog somewhere this week that it was the author's view that a thinking of you/get well card should always be in brighter colours to lift the recipients mood. As someone who was entirely happy with her card until I read this, and who also loves bright colours, I'm now having second thoughts  - maybe I should remake it with something less subtle; what do you think? Either way, I still love today's card!

Feel free to leave a comment on today's card, before hopping over to check out the amazing cards by the rest of the Colour Me...! team:

Nuts About You Clear-Mount Stamp Set	Many Marvelous Markers	Big Shot Die-Cut Machine	Big Shot Magnetic Platform	Circles Collection Framelits Dies
Very Vanilla A4 Card Stock	Soft Suede A4 Card Stock	Early Espresso A4 Card Stock	Embossing Buddy	Versamark Pad
Heat Tool - Uk Plug	Stampin' Emboss Powder Early Espresso	Trim The Tree Designer Series Paper Stack

It's Sunday and time for another challenge over at The Paper Players, where this week Ann has a clean and simple challenge with a 'thankful' theme for us:

Inspired by the leaves in our challenge badge this week, I decided to use up a few more of my much-loved Autumn Wooden Elements and create a colour-block card using the colours over at Colour Q (substituting for the closest match in my collection) - I'm also linking up with Catherine & Cathy Creates where the theme is 'thankful for fall'. Here is my card:

I used a base of Old Olive, then matted the front with a piece of Whisper White that I had stamped in the corner with my 'thanks' sentiment from Another Thank You in Chocolate Chip. I then took a piece of Old Olive and I added 4 panels to it, one each in Chocolate Chip, Pumpkin Pie, Cajun Craze and Old Olive.  I then lined up my Fall Fest Framelits and cut a shaped edge, that mirrors the shape of the wooden leaves. This panel was adhered to the base using dimensionals - this allows the wooden leaves to fit right into the shaped edge - here's a closer look:

To finish, I added some Early Espresso baker's twine across the top and tied it in a bow. A super-CAS card using some fun techniques. Do pop by The Paper Players challenge blog to check out what the other designers have come up with this week - there is great inspiration there, as always.

We are having a quiet sport-free weekend this week; both James Juniors have been poorly this week and we are keen that they recover themselves enough to survive the rest of what is a busy half-term for them. We do have a little treat in store this afternoon though; I'll let you know well it's received tomorrow!

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Fun Fall Framelits Dies	Autumn Wooden Elements	Another Thank You Photopolymer Stamp Set	Big Shot Die-Cut Machine	Big Shot Magnetic Platform
Stampin' Dimensionals	Old Olive A4 Card Stock	Pumpkin Pie A4 Card Stock	Cajun Craze A4 Card Stock	Chocolate Chip Classic Stampin' Pad
Chocolate Chip A4 Card Stock	Early Espresso Baker's Twine

Today I'm sharing my card for this week's Merry Monday Christmas Card Challenge, where this week the challenge is to create a Christmas card with ornaments that are sliver/grey and blue:

I went for a little 'something old, something new' for today's card: I had a piece of last year's Winter Frost DSP on my desk, so decided to combine it with a couple of ornaments from this year's Cheerful Christmas set for today's card:

I used a single piece of Island Indigo to back my folded base of Smoky Slate and cut a square out of the front using my Big Shot and Square framelits, using the next size up to create an embossed frame. I used a square of Winter Frost DSP inside the framed area, and added a couple of baubles, one in Coastal Cabana and one in Island Indigo, both of which I stamped in Versamark and heat embossed in silver then fussy cut out with my paper snips. I popped one of on with a glue dot and the other with a dimensional and finished with my sentiment banner, which I finished with a row of tiny rhinestones for a little extra sparkle.

That's all from me for today; back tomorrow with my Design Team card for The Paper Players, where Ann has a new themed challenge for us. until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Big Shot Die-Cut Machine	Big Shot Magnetic Platform	Squares Collection Framelits Dies	Cheerful Christmas Clear-Mount Stamp Set	Island Indigo Classic Stampin' Pad
Island Indigo A4 Card Stock	Card Stock A4 Smoky Slate	Whisper White A4 Card Stock	Card Stock A4 Coastal Cabana	Silver Stampin' Emboss Powder
Embossing Buddy	Heat Tool - Uk Plug	Versamark Pad	Mini Glue Dots	Basic Rhinestones Jewel Accents
Stampin' Dimensionals

Today I thought I would share with you the Christmas star wreath I made at my class yesterday. I used the All is Calm Speciality Designer Series Paper for my version, which looks like this:

I layered a circle of Lost Lagoon flat stars, cut out with my Stars framelits, onto my wreath base, then cut 12 stars out of the All Is Calm Speciality DSP for the 3D stars. Each of these stars was scored from the point to the opposite side then pinched together to create the dimension and once glued to the wreath base, finished with a selction of Brights, Neutrals, Subtles and silver buttons:

To finish, a length of the luxurious In-Colour Lost Lagoon satin ribbon to create a bow and hanging loop:

You can see another example of this wreath made with the Under The Tree Speciality DSP over on my Facebook page - it looks lovely in the kraft and more traditional, red, greens and browns, so do check it out. I have another of these classes next week where the ladies will be making them using other papers of their choice.

I hope you like today's project; this is going to be my indoor wreath as it matches my dining room colours perfectly; I have another two wreaths to share with you in coming weeks, so if home decor is your thing, keep an eye out for the other versions!

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

All Is Calm Specialty Designer Series Paper	Lost Lagoon A4 Cardstock	Big Shot Die-Cut Machine	Stars Framelits Dies	Big Shot Magnetic Platform
Lost Lagoon 3/8" Satin Stitched Ribbon	Simply Scored	Mini Glue Dots	Basic Metal Buttons	Brights Designer Buttons
Subtles Designer Buttons	Neutrals Designer Buttons

It's Sunday and time for a new challenge over at The Paper Players and this week Sandy has a fantastic colour challenge for us:

Aren't these colours so reminiscent of winter? I also used this week's sketch over at The Paper Craft Crew for the layout for today's card:

I used Cherry Cobbler for my card base and matted this with a piece of Very Vanilla cardstock. I created my own DSP for my background panel by stamping Mossy Meadow ink on Mossy Meadow cardstock and stamping a selection of the baubles from the Nordic Noel set. The focal image of my card is the main stamp in this set, which I coloured with my Mossy Meadow and Cherry Cobbler markers to achieve the two-colour pattern. A Stylish Stripes embossed panel added a little background texture and I finished with the gorgeous in-colour Mossy Meadow satin ribbon and an antique brad, along with a sentiment from Good Greetings. Lastly, there is a 'cheat' element to my card today - did you spot it? For all of you wondering where I managed to get my Mossy Meadow candy dots from, since they aren't in the catalogue, I'll let you into a secret - they're actually Always Artichoke! I'm hoping Sandy will forgive me, but as they aren't next to anything that is Mossy Meadow you cant see the subtle difference in colour so they do the job as far as my card is concerned. I won't tell if you don't ;-).

I hope you like today's card; do pop by The Paper Players gallery to see what the rest of the team have come up with - there are some great cards as always. There's even one by LeAnne that uses the exact same sketch layout as me, yet it looks completely different, so check it out for double inspiration!

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Cherry Cobbler A4 Card Stock	Cheerful Christmas Clear-Mount Stamp Set	Regals Stampin' Write Markers	Very Vanilla A4 Card Stock	Mossy Meadow Classic Stampin' Pad
2014-2016 In Color Stampin' Write Markers	Mossy Meadow A4 Cardstock	Big Shot Die-Cut Machine	Circles Collection Framelits Dies	Stylish Stripes Textured Impressions Embossing Folder
2-1/2 Inch Circle Punch	Mossy Meadow 3/8" Satin Stitched Ribbon	Antique Brads

Yay it's Friday - always a good day! Today I'm sharing my card for this week's Less is More challenge, where the theme is non-traditional colours on a Christmas card (specifically no red or green). I decided to go with another Nutcracker card - he is so perfect for non-traditional colour schemes, and this time with a very simple layout; here's my card:

I used a base of Soft Sky and layered a couple of mats of Rich Razzleberry and Soft Sky, then stamped my Nutcracker image directly onto the Soft Sky layer and did some basic paper piecing on the jacket and hat to add the Rich Razzleberry elements and the Soft Sky crown. His face was stamped on Blushing Bride and again paper pieced together. I coloured the eyebrows and hair using my Smoky Slate Stampin' Up! Blendabilities markers, and stamped the moustache in Memento Black onto Smoky Slate cardstock and popped it up on dimensionals. Some Rich Razzleberry candy dots on his crown and Soft Sky ones on his jacket complete the look.

There you have it - another non-traditional nutcracker card. Back tomorrow with another project; until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Subtles Candy Dots	Santa Stache Clear-Mount Stamp Set	Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad	Big Shot Die-Cut Machine	Big Shot Magnetic Platform
Mustache Framelits Die	Stampin' Blendabilities™ Markers Smokey Slate Assortment	Card Stock A4 Smoky Slate	Card Stock A4 Soft Sky	Rich Razzleberry A4 Card Stock
Brights Candy Dots	Card Stock A4 Blushing Bride

Good morning everyone! I'm back with another Christmas card today - well, it truly is the season for it now! Today's card uses the sketch over at CAS(E) This Sketch which was the perfect layout for me to showcase some lovely Nordic Noel DSP and incorporate a layered die cut. Here's this week's sketch:

And this is my card: 

A simple layering of Garden Green on Soft Sky, followed by the Nordic Noel DSP. This paper has such a busy pattern I find it only really works on cards like this where there isn't anything to clutter it; I cut my 'Joy' die cut in Real Red, then stacked it on a couple of identical die cuts in Garden Green to give it real dimension (I used adhesive transfer sheets to hold the layers together, which made for very easy layering). I decided to mount it onto a rectangular piece of Garden Green cardstock, because the die cut didn't stand out enough against the patterned paper without, then I added the 'to you' from the Endless Wishes stamp set in Garden Green on Calypso Coral beneath it - the only stamping on today's card! Lastly, I added a sprinkling of candy dots in something of a nod to the sketch, albeit that I restricted use of them to the solid colour panels.

Hope you like today's card - if you like this layout you should check out the other cards on the CAS(E) This Sketch page - there are some great examples there.

Right, I'm off to get some work done - back tomorrow with another Christmas card; until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Nordic Noel Designer Series Paper	Wonderful Wreath Framelits Dies	Endless Wishes Photopolymer Stamp Set	Transfer Adhesive Sheets	Card Stock A4 Soft Sky
Calypso Coral A4 Card Stock	Subtles Candy Dots	Garden Green A4 Card Stock	Regals Candy Dots	Real Red A4 Card Stock
Garden Green Classic Stampin' Pad