Today I'm sharing two quick and easy cards using the Sealed With Love bundle that use the same layout for two different looks. The first one was inspired by this card by Mary Fish - but I wanted both my cards to be about 'sending love' rather than Valentine's Day specifically, to show just how versatile this bundle is. Here's my first card, where I simply switched out the sentiment for one from the Designer Tin of Cards stamp set:

For my second card I reversed the colour palette to 'red on white' as opposed to 'white on red' and paired the sentiment on the outside of the card from the 'Sealed With Love Set' with the words 'On Your Birthday' from the Popcorn stamp set on the inside:

 Here's the low-down on today's card:

Hearts To DIE For - On both of these cards, the heart edging die totally steals the show! It creates the perfect border for the strips of Sending Love designer series paper and is sized perfectly to border an A6 size card front. 

Sending Love - As I mentioned in Wednesday's post, the Sending Love designer series paper stack has some great paper patterns and designs that work for birthdays and general 'love' themed cards too, not just for Valentines. This design is great for using leftover strips of paper; 'waste not, want not' as the old saying goes! 

Not Just For Valentine's - The variety of images and sentiments in the Sealed With Love stamp set will take this set through February and beyond; who doesn't like to receive a little love note every once in a while?

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

And the 'red on white' version:

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

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Sending Love Designer Series Paper Stack	Sealed With Love Photopolymer Stamp Set	Love Notes Framelits Dies	Real Red A4 Cardstock	Real Red Classic Stampin' Pad
Whisper White A4 Thick Cardstock	Embossing Buddy	Versamark Pad	White Stampin' Emboss Powder

Today I'm sharing a fancy fold card that I made for my first technique class of the year that is also perfect for a couple of challenges this week:

The ladies over at TGIF Challenges are working with a love theme and the gals over at Just Add Ink have a blog hope this week featuring Pop Up and Interactive Cards. I urge you to check it out and the wonderful entries into this week's challenge, there are some fabulous examples of interactive cards on show.

I have been wanting to have a go at the Twisted Pop Up Panel card that has been appearing everywhere over the internet in recent weeks, so having watched a few tutorials I got down to business. On the outside a fairly straightforward looking envelope-style card:

It's when you open it up that the magic happens and the pop-up is revealed:

And here it is fully opened so that you can see the fun fold out panels in all their glory:

 Here's the low-down on today's card:

Twisted Pop Up Panel Card - I looked at several different versions of this card in order to work out how to create my pop-up panel card and in true Crafty Owl fashion didn't follow any one set of instructions, rather combined a number of 'learns' to create my card. I may well shoot my own video tutorial on this later this week, so if you'd like to find out how I did it, then pop back and check it out. One things for sure, the ladies at my technique class loved it and have definitely got the bug for creating more of them now!

Sending Love in Red and White - My technique class featured the Sealed With Love product bundle - used for the 'Sealed with a kiss' button on the front of my card and that fabulous stamped and diecut heart that adorns the 'O' of the word LOVE. For me this card was a real opportunity to showcase the Sending Love Designer Series Paper Stack, with five different patterns on show. The real challenge was which five of the twelve red and white patterns in the DSP stack to choose - check them out:

My team laugh at me as they think I have an unhealthy obsession with designer series paper and to be honest, they are probably right! I'm not one of those to keep it and stroke it though - I do cut into it and use it and am always looking for ways to incorporate it into my designs. I particularly like the 6" x 6" stacks, which are incredibly good value for money.

Large Letters, Big Impact - I've said it before and I'll say it again - the Large Letter Framelits are great and well worth the investment! They are great for a sentiment with impact; I've paired mine with the 'you' from the 'Hello You Thinlits' to complete my Valentine's message. If you are considering purchasing the Large Letter Framelits, now is an even better time to pop them in your shopping basket - add a little something to them and earn two free Sale-A-Bration items or alternatively why not include them in a starter kit? 

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

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

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Large Letters Framelits Dies	Hello You Thinlits Dies	Sending Love Designer Series Paper Stack	Sealed With Love Photopolymer Stamp Set	Stitched Shapes Framelits Dies
Love Notes Framelits Dies	Whisper White A4 Cardstock	Real Red A4 Cardstock	Real Red Classic Stampin' Pad	Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad

Happy Monday everyone! As promised yesterday, I have another card for you using the Special Reason bundle and this week's colour palette over at Fab Friday:

In the process of making my card for our challenge over at The Paper Players this week, I had lots of bits and pieces left over, including the very piece I started out with that included a stamped flower. So often these end up in my scrapbox never to see the light of day again; to avoid this happening, I set about making another card right away - here it is:

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

A Special Reason to Rock 'n' Roll - As I mentioned yesterday, I love how the pale blue and warm vanilla tone down the Sweet Sugarplum in the above colour combination, as I sometimes find this purpley-pink a little stark when paired with stronger colours. I thought I'd use the rock and roll technique to add a little plum to the tips of the petals of my blue inked flower taken from the Special Reason stamp set; I also used a cotton bud (aka 'cue tip' for my USA friends!) to add a little to the inner petals too; I love how this gives subtle added definition to the form of the flower itself.

Ways With Stylish Stems Framelits - In addition to my large diecut flower and leaf, I also used my Stylish Stems Framelits to add some subtle detail to my stamped flower: if you look closely, you will see I partially die cut the mat in order to have my flower hang over that lovely piece of Fabulous Foil Designer Acetate and the metallic ribbon. It adds dimension without bulk and the need for an extra layer.

Fancy Some Free Metallics? - In addition to the strip of gold scallop pattern Fabulous Foil Designer Acetate (I just love this stuff!) I added a strip of ribbon and a bow to my card, using the gorgeous vanilla and gold ribbon from the Sale-A-Bration Metallic Ribbon Combo Pack (the other ribbon in the pack is white and woven with silver). This ribbon has a soft, almost velvety feel and ties the most beautiful bows - check out this fabulous gift packaging too:

This is one of the items that can be yours free during Sale-A-Bration with a £45 order - you are definitely going to want some!

I also used one of the two-part sentiments from the Special Reason stamp set - the inside of my card reads "...except to let you know how special you are!" How lovely is that?! Perfect to send to a friend of mine 'just because'.

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. 

I'll be back tomorrow with another project; I'm finally getting back into the swing of things here in blog land! Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

Special Reason Clear-Mount Bundle	Sweet Sugarplum A4 Cardstock	Sweet Sugarplum Classic Stampin' Pad	Soft Sky A4 Cardstock	Soft Sky Classic Stampin' Pad
Very Vanilla A4 Cardstock	Stylish Stems Framelits Dies	Special Reason Clear-Mount Stamp Set	Embossing Buddy	Versamark Pad
Gold Stampin' Emboss Powder	Heat Tool (Uk)	Fabulous Foil Designer Acetate	3/8" Metallic Ribbon Combo Pack

Hello lovely readers! I hope you've all enjoyed browsing the new Spring-Summer Stampin' Up! catalogue and this year's Sale-A-Bration offering and are busy making wishlists and buying those must-have items. Today I'm sharing a card I made with my pre-order goodies back in December for my team Christmas outing. Instead of our usual team meeting, we decided in December to have our very own festive Crafternoon Tea. In addition to enjoying a lovely afternoon tea, we spent the afternoon doing a shoebox swap with each of us creating the cards cards that the others had designed, some using new pre-order items from the spring-Summer and SAB catalogues, thus providing us with lots of new samples. I am loving the new hot air balloons so I just had to feature them on my card:

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

Up & Away Balloon - The star of today's card is most definitely the layered diecut hot air balloon - isn't it gorgeous? It's made using the new Up & Away Thinlits Dies. This is a great set with three different balloon sizes, clouds and lots of basket and layering options along with this lovely detailed large balloon. 

Your Smiles Lift Me Up - What's better than a great die set? Well, a great die set with a co-ordinating stamp set! the 'Lift me Up' stamp set has some great stamped balloon images, clouds and accessories as well as five varied sentiments for everything from birthdays to congratulations and sending smiles. 

Carried Away For Free - The paper on today's card is from the Carried Away Designer Series Paper pack that can be yours for FREE with a £45 purchase. It co-ordinates perfectly with the Lift Me Up bundle - a selection of pretty balloons, skyscapes and maps in bold, bright colours. Love it!

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. 

Here's a picture of some of my lovely team members at our festive gathering - what a great bunch:

I love these ladies, none of whom would I have met but for our shared love of crafting and some of whom joined during previous Sale-A-Brations. Sale-A-Bration is a great time to join Stampin' Up! with one of the best recruitment offers; if you would like to know more about the benefits of joining my team, please do get in touch for a no-obligation chat - we would love you to join us!

That's all from me; back tomorrow with another project; until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

Lift Me Up Wood-Mount Bundle	Lift Me Up Clear-Mount Bundle	Carried Away Designer Series Paper	Mint Macaron A4 Cardstock	Watermelon Wonder A4 Cardstock
Peekaboo Peach A4 Cardstock	Night Of Navy A4 Cardstock	Night Of Navy Classic Stampin' Pad

It's time to shake off the January blues, today is THE day - yes, the highlight of the Stampin' Up! calendar, Sale-A-Bration is here! No more sneak peeks - the catalogue is available, the shop is live and from now until 31st March the benefits are yours for the taking. You can click on the icon above or the catalogue on the right hand side of my blog page to access the Sale-A-Bration leaflet to download a copy or go directly to my online shop to place an order - we are LIVE!

So what is Sale-A-Bration? For anyone who hasn't come across it before, it's Stampin' Up!'s annual promotion that is loaded with offers whether you shop, join or host:

Earn a free Sale-A-Bration product for every £45 you spend between 4 January and 31 March. It's the perfect time to purchase those products you've had on your wish list and earn more products for free! 

It’s the best time of year to join Stampin’ Up! During Sale-A-Bration, you can become a demonstrator for just £99 and choose £30 more of FREE products for your Starter Kit. Plus, the kit ships for free! There is plenty of choice and flexibility, whether you want to be a hobby demonstrator and just use your discount to enable you to purchase craft supplies more cheaply, or alternatively would like to build a flourishing direct sales business and sell supplies to others - it's entirely up to you. In addition, you can choose two free stamp sets of your choice - that could be worth as much as another £93 to you!

Earn an additional £20 in hostess credits when you host a party and have party sales of £200 or more (this also applies to individual orders). So for party sales of £200, that makes a whopping £40 of Stampin' Rewards - more freebies! What's more, you can even apply your Stampin' Rewards to a Starter Kit and become a demonstrator yourself - I would love to welcome you to my team!

If you would like to host a party, real or virtual, please do get in touch; my diary is filling up but there are still lots of slots available and I would love to share these great benefits with you. If you've ever thought about becoming an SU! demonstrator, now is a great time to do so - I would love to have a no-obligation chat with you about joining my team and the benefits.

As if that wasn't enough, today also sees the launch of the new Spring-Summer catalogue - full of gorgeous new products:

Just click on the image above or in the sidebar on the right to browse the catalogue online, or contact me on 07773 421446 if you would like a paper copy posted out to you and you don't already have a demonstrator. If you are as excited as me and just can't wait, here's the link to my online store - everything is available to purchase from today!

Thanks so much for popping by today - it's always nice to share good news! Back tomorrow with a project showcasing some of the products from the new catalogue. Until then, happy shopping!

I had a fun family day yesterday, full of laughs and the last of the Christmas crackers. I'm back today with another couple of cards to welcome in the new year for the current challenge over at Freshly Made Sketches:

I made two identical cards, one in each of two colourways. Here's the first one, in white and silver:

And here's the second one in black and gold:

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

A Frosted Medallion - For today's card I've used both the large medallion and the sentiment from the 'Frosted Medallions' stamp set as intended for a new year's card. I stamped both in Versamark and heat embossed them in silver on the white version. I debated about whether or not I should obscure that gorgeous medallion shape with the sentiment, but in the end decided that the card looked a little naked without the sentiment and besides, I like the way the edges frame the centred oval, giving just a hint of the design beneath. The Frosted Medallions stamp set is still available as part of the 'Year End Closeouts' for just a couple more days before retiring to make way for a new range of seasonal products, so if this set appeals to you, snap it up now before it's gone for good.

Fabulous Foil Designer Acetate Panel - My vertical background panel is courtesy of the Fabulous Foil Designer Acetate - I just love this for adding layering detail to cards without bulk. Easy for a two-way card too - I just cut two pieces and flipped one (don't forget to remove the protective seal from the silver-patterned side to see it shine in all its glory).

Stitched Shape Framelits Are Returning - I finished my card with a sentiment from the Frosted Medallions set framed in a simple stitched oval. I know these have been unavailable to order due to unprecedented demand when first introduced, however good news - those who did manage to order them before they were put on hold and had theirs on backorder will be receiving them any day now and for those who still want to get their hands on them, stocks are likely to have been fully replenished by mid-January so they will once again be available to purchase - and in time for Sale-A-Bration too, wahoo! These stitched shapes just finish off a sentiment beautifully and I guarantee one you have them you won't be able to stop using them!

So which one of these colourways do you prefer? I gave the gold and black one to my mother-in-law yesterday as I know she is partial to this colour combo, but I think I prefer the silver and white one myself - so crisp and fresh. I would love to know what you think - do feel free to leave me a comment below, I read them all and love it when you share your views with me.

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. 

That's all from me; back tomorrow with another project; until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

Frosted Medallions Clear-Mount Stamp Set	Stitched Shapes Framelits Dies	Fabulous Foil Designer Acetate	Embossing Buddy	Versamark Pad
Gold Stampin' Emboss Powder	Silver Stampin' Emboss Powder	Gold Foil Sheets	Silver Foil Sheets	Basic Black A4 Cardstock
Whisper White A4 Thick Cardstock

Well hello! Have you missed me? I hope you've all enjoyed a wonderful Christmas and best wishes for a very happy new year! I had a very busy Christmas season and had to take an extended blogging break; sometimes some things just have to give and for me my blog was one of them this past few weeks. Anyway, now I'm back and here with a card to welcome in the new year. I'm also entering a couple of challenges: the Paper Craft Crew are looking for a black-tie gala inspired card and the peeps over at CAS-ual Fridays are working with the theme of 'Celebrations':

I decided that today the owl should return in more ways than one - take a look at my card to see what I mean:

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

A Dapper Owl - The star of today's card is the super-sparkly, rather dapper Fred Astaire-esque owl that is tripping the light fantastic as he welcomes in the new year! The Owl Builder Punch was one of my first Stampin' Up! purchases and I love how versatile it is. I used the owl punch to make the very first new year card that I blogged way back in 2013 when I first began blogging (you can see that card here) so it seemed fitting that I should use an altogether more elegant owl to kick start 2017. This card also heralds the start of a new weekly feature of mine: each week I will be creating a card that features a different owl or character made with the Owl Builder Punch. This is a fun way to demonstrate the versatility of this popular Stampin' Up! punch, so be sure to tune in each week for your owl inspiration. Today's owl sports a gold glimmer waistcoat and a top hat and bow tie courtesy of the Snow Friends Framelits. The walking cane is a simple strip of glimmer paper and a circle punched with the owl builder punch. Along with my Large Number Framelit numbers, today's owl is seriously sparkly!

It's A Celebration - My starry background is courtesy of the fireworks in the 'It's a Celebration' stamp set in the current seasonal catalogue; I stamped them in Versamark and heat embossed in silver and gold for a dramatic background reminiscent of the night sky.

Yes, Let's Celebrate 2017! - I finished my card with a sentiment from the 'Confetti Celebration' stamp set - ot just for birthdays, this set works for lots of other kinds of celebration 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 Product and 'How To' summaries on my 'How To - Tips and Techniques' Pinterest board in case you've missed any. 

That's all from me; I'm off to spend the day with the extended James family to welcome in the new year. Back tomorrow with another project; until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

Owl Builder Punch	Snow Friends Framelits Dies	It's A Celebration Wood-Mount Stamp Set	Confetti Celebration Clear-Mount Stamp Set	Embossing Buddy
Versamark Pad	Gold Stampin' Emboss Powder	Silver Stampin' Emboss Powder	Gold Glimmer Paper	Gold Foil Sheets
Basic Black A4 Cardstock	Whisper White A4 Cardstock

It's Sunday and time for a new challenge over at The Paper Players! Before I get into my post, I must just give a shout out to the lovely Linda, Hannelie and Colleen who have been the most awesome guest designers with us for the last six months; these ladies have done a fabulous job and I will miss your contributions and do hope you continue to play along with us from time to time. Thank you for sharing your designs and creativity with us! Whilst we are sad to see these ladies leave, it also means we will have some new guest designers joining us too; watch out for more news on this with my mid-week reminder post on Wednesday to see who will be joining us to kick off 2017!

Meanwhile, it's the turn of the lovely Jaydee to host this week and she has a glamorous colour challenge for us to work with:

All the sparkle of silver and gold, paired with brilliant white! I decided that a glamorous stocking was going to be my focal point today and I also used Amy's sketch over at Freshly Made Sketches for my layout - here's my card:

My card today is another one with lots of layers and a variety of foil and glimmer paper to add lots of sparkle: my diecut stocking is gold foil layered with gold glimmer and a white glimmer top with embossed holly decoration, I layered a silver foil doily behind and added a piece of silver foil acetate between my white cardbase and mat, which I embossed with my favourite embossing folder of all time, Softly Falling, for added detail. I used my Stitched Shape Framelits for my sentiment square (you will be pleased to know theses will be available to order again early January in time for Sale-A-Bration - yay!) and chose a sentiment from the Christmas Pines stamp set to complete my card as this seemed the most appropriate, which I also heat embossed in gold.

This is the kind of stocking I imagine someone like Joan Collins to own (or maybe Donald Trump, since he seems to be a fan of all things glitzy and gold!) - either way, definitely all about the luxury! I'm more of a traditional red and white girl myself :-)

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:

I look forward to seeing what you create with this colour palette this week. This morning I will be recovering from a Christmas night out yesterday and this afternoon we are officially decorating the James household for Christmas. My wreath is made and hanging proudly on my front door already, so with the tree up and the rest of the decorations in place, I'm sure it will start to feel like Christmas is well and truly on its way!

Enjoy the rest of your weekend as it will be over all too quickly; I'll be back tomorrow with another project; until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Hang Your Stocking Photopolymer Bundle	Christmas Pines Photopolymer Stamp Set	Softly Falling Textured Impressions Embossing Folder	Fabulous Foil Designer Acetate	Stitched Shapes Framelits Dies
Gold Foil Sheets	Metallic Foil Doilies	Gold Glimmer Paper	Dazzling Diamonds Glimmer Paper	Versamark Pad
Silver Stampin' Emboss Powder	Embossing Buddy	Heat Tool (Uk)	Whisper White A4 Thick Cardstock

Happy Monday everyone! I've had a busy start to my week with deliveries and appointments but did manage to catch up with a couple of friends for a festive afternoon tea, which was lovely. I have a quick card to share with you today  - this one is from one of last month's classes where we were using the Santa's Sleigh bundle. This was our warm up card and features the traditional colours that the Paper Craft Crew are challenging us to use this week:

I got out the washi tape and set to work - here's my card:

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

O Christmas Tree -  The tree framelit in the Santa's Sleigh Thinlits set makes for an elegant Christmas tree, and does double duty when the negative space is used creatively too. On this card the focal point is the absence of the actual tree, as opposed to the tree itself. 

Warmth and Cheer Washi - Here the tree is decorated with Warmth and Cheer washi tape, simple strips of colour onto the Crumb Cake card base. Perfect within the Garden Green top layer, to add to the feeling of foliage.

And A Star - I finished my card with a stamped sentiment, tied twine bow and a metallic gold star.

A great simple card, easy for mass production - and don't we all need those at this time of year!

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. 

That's all from me; I'll be back soon with another project; until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Santa's Sleigh Dies Thinlits	Santa's Sleigh Photopolymer Stamp Set	Warmth & Cheer Designer Washi Tape	Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad	Baker's Twine Trio Pack
Crumb Cake A4 Cardstock	Garden Green A4 Cardstock	Metallic Enamel Shapes