A second post for today with some hot-off-the-press news! From 23-25 April, there will be free shipping on all orders of £60 or more! Details as follows:

• All order types qualify for this promotion.
• Free shipping is for three days only. Orders must be opened and closed during 23-25 April.*
• Free shipping automatically applies to your basket after the qualifying amount has been met, which is 75 € | £60 (before shipping and handling).
• Coupon codes and product credits are non-commissionable and will lower your order’s retail amount. Orders must meet the qualifying amount to be eligible for free shipping.
• The additional cost for expedited shipping is not covered by this promotion.

*Due to the time difference, this promotion will start on 22 April at 11:00 p.m., for Ireland and the United Kingdom.

Click here to go straight to the online store - happy shopping!

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 'fill in the blank' challenge chosen by Heather C:

This will be fun! Retired and discontinued products that I've kept - well, far too many for sure!! I used both the Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge Sketch for my layout and the pretty colour palette over at Colour Inkspiration as both were perfect for me to highlight not just one, but a number of items that I could use to fill in our blank this week - take a look:

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

Now you could be forgiven for thinking that I took my inspiration from the sketch and colour inspiration picture quite literally, but the truth is it was a complete coincidence that today's card features a bunny! I tend to make my Easter cards a year in advance (I rarely make them early enough to send if I make them the same year), so having sent out all of this year's cards, I needed to start replenishing my stock. My retired Bunny Builder Punch is just perfect for the job and it is definitely a punch I wouldn't part with (I kept the co-ordinating stamp set too, although I haven't used it on today's card). There are a few other retired favourites on today's card too: the Itty Bitty Punches I used for the flowers that decorate my cute bunny (I can't tell you how many offers I've had from people to buy these, but they are so useful - I will keep them forever!), the 'Happy Easter' greeting (this comes from the 'Welcome Easter' stamp set) and the scalloped panel (cut using the retired Scalloped Contours Dies). With the exception of the colours and cardstock, the only thing current on today's card is the Country Lace designer paper that I used for my background. It's the retired bunny though that is the scene-stealer here:

Isn't she just the cutest?! So nice to give some retired favourites some love for this challenge - I can't wait to see the things that have made it into your 'keep' collection too.

There's no visual summary of the key products used on today's project today, since they are pretty much all retired - I've added shop links for any product that is current below.

Here's a summary of our challenge rules:

• Create any card, scrapbooking page, 3D or packaging project that fits the challenge.
• For a Fill in The Blank Challenge complete the sentence and show how you achieved this in your project.
• 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 and I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

It's Tuesday and time for a new challenge over at CAS Colours & Sketches. This week's challenge is a sketch challenge and I've designed my layout with a narrow vertical border and sentiment across the wide panel. Feel free to flip or rotate the sketch when making your card.

For my card today I decided to make a card that showcased the greenery diecut in the Mixed Florals bundle - the one that was hidden by all the flowers on Sunday's card (you can see that card here if you missed it):

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

There are three things that each have a significant role to play on today's card:

The Mixed Florals Diecut - The detail of this diecut deserves to showcased in all its glory once in a while - and today's card is it!

The Oxidised Copper Designer Paper - This paper, with its beautiful copper foil highlights, is really lovely and works best when it is allowed to take centre stage; so a border and the diecut itself allows it to stand out against the Pretty Peacock cardbase, whist still retaining a clean and simple feel.

Thinking Of You Sentiment - This sentiment comes from one of my favourite sentiment sets, 'Friends For Life'. I love the combination of typeface and the shine of the embossed copper and it's just the right size to balance the diecut:

Just the sentiment for this week's 'YOU' word challenge over at Just Us Girls this week too; I can't quite believe I've managed to join in with each of their challenges for the last three weeks - I must be on a roll!

The only other thing to mention is that I used one of the Everyday Arches Dies to diecut my sentiment label; this is the first time I've used one as a label rather than an arch, but it just goes to show how useful these are. A few copper sequins complete my card. 

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. 

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! color 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:

MIXED FLORALS BUNDLE (54.00)	NEUTRALS ADHESIVE-BACKED SEQUINS (7.00)	OXIDIZED COPPER 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) SPECIALTY DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (7.50)	FRIENDS FOR LIFE PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (12.00)	VERSAMARK PAD (9.00)	METALLICS WOW! EMBOSSING POWDER (20.00)
PRETTY PEACOCK A4 CARDSTOCK (10.75)	EVERYDAY ARCHES DIES (27.00)

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 chosen by Jan:

I love purples, but the addition of the Peach Pie almost threw me for a loop this week. So when in doubt and there's green in the palette - go floral! That's what I did with this week's colour palette. I'm also playing along with Team O over at TicTactoe Challenge and going down the middle column of their board with enamel dots/free/diecut. Take a look at what I created:

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

Thankful Garden - I know I shared a few sneak peeks of the Thankful Garden bundle when it was still on preorder; the latest drop of Online Exclusives went live earlier this week so this is your reminder that this fabulous bundle is now yours for the taking! My previous cards have used one or other of the florals in this set, but for today's card I used both - and extra diecut greenery that's also in the set too. I used the stencils to colour, blending the purples for my hydrangea and then I coloured two versions of the other flower: one in shades of Peach Pie, and a second in shades of purple, then I fussy cut the centres on the purple one and glued the to the peach one, to create my two-tone flower. I'm not sure what kind of flower these are supposed to be (primrose maybe?) but today's version reminds me of pansies. Either way they're pretty, right? 

Layers and Texture - Today's card is rather atypical for me; in addition to my florals and greenery, I also added a brick-embossed base and diecut an Everyday Arch from the Country Woods designer series paper - you can just see it peeking out beneath the flowers below:

With co-ordinating gems and a fussy cut sentiment, this card is choc full of detail - sometimes 'more is more', I think!

Insider Detail - I kept the inside fairly simple, just adding an off-the-edge stamped hydrangea, with an additional sentiment stamped on top; sometimes I like to stamp my inside sentiment in the corner instead of the traditional middle, as it gives more space for uninterrupted writing - do you ever do this?

Whilst this card is a little busier than my usual style, I love the finished effect - a lovely way to showcase the colours 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 or packaging project that fits the challenge.
• For a Colour Challenge use all of the given colours and only those colours with these exceptions:
• White and Very Vanilla are free colours.
• In addition, you may use of ONE of these neutrals: Basic Black, Basic Gray, Crumb Cake, Basic Beige.
• 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 and I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

THANKFUL GARDEN BUNDLE (ENGLISH) (62.00)	EXPOSED BRICK 3D EMBOSSING FOLDER (10.25)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (10.50)	BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (14.00)	GARDEN GREEN A4 CARDSTOCK (10.75)	FRESH FREESIA A4 CARDSTOCK (10.75)
TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (7.50)	FRESH FREESIA CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	GORGEOUS GRAPE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	GARDEN GREEN CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	PEACH PIE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	BLENDING BRUSHES (14.00)
EVERYDAY ARCHES DIES (27.00)	COUNTRY WOODS 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (11.75)	2024–2026 IN COLOR™ SHIMMER GEMS (4.80)

I'm here with a quick post to let you know that the Last Chance Products section of the online store has updated today. There are hundreds of new and discounted products from the mini and annual catalogues and online exclusives. You can check them all out HERE; go take a look, there are some great bargains to be had.

There are also three new kits available in the online store today:

The Paper Bouquet Kit: 

 The Essential Occasions Kit:

The Loveliest Wishes Kit:

You can find out more information on any of these kits by visiting the Kits Collection section of the online store.

Happy shopping! 

It's Tuesday and April already in Australia, so time for a new challenge over at CAS Colours & Sketches. I'm hosting this month and our first challenge is a colour challenge: 

This is quite a rich colour palette for the time of year, but I wanted to celebrate two of Stampin' Up!'s departing In-Colours, Moody Mauve and Pebbled Path, before they retire at the end of the month. I thought these colours would be great for some earthy coloured mushrooms, so I grabbed my 'Terrific Toadstools' stamp set and my aquapainter and decided on a spot of clean and simple watercolouring - take a look:

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

I diecut a rectangle of watercolour paper using my Nested Essentials Dies and stamped a single toadstool onto it. I inked the stamp using my sponge daubers, using Basic Beige for the stem and highlighting with pebble Patch, which I also used for the gills. The cap was inked in Moddy Mauve and Blackberry Bliss. Once I'd stamped the mushroom, I used my aquapianter to paint a watercoloured background behind it:

I added a couple of tabs of In-Colour ribbons as a little extra highlight to complete my focal point and added it to a Basic Beige card base. I didn't add a sentiment to the front of my card, as I thought it would make a nice simple notecard that could be used for any occasion. Having made this card, I actually made a second one, this time on a Moody Mauve card base. This one was slightly easier: a watercoloured base and two mushrooms stamped onto basic white cardstock, fussy cut and added to my watercoloured panel:

Two mushrooms allowed for a little extra colour contrast. I also added a sentiment from the 'Terrific Toadstools' stamp set to complete my card:

Which of these cards do you prefer? Do leave me a comment and let me know - I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Here is the visual summary of the key products used on today's projects 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. 

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:

TERRIFIC TOADSTOOLS PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (18.00)	NESTED ESSENTIALS DIES (32.00)	WATER PAINTERS (13.00)	FLUID 100 WATERCOLOR PAPER (8.50)	BLACKBERRY BLISS CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	MOODY MAUVE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)
PEBBLED PATH CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	BASIC BEIGE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	BASIC BEIGE A4 CARDSTOCK (10.75)	MOODY MAUVE A4 CARDSTOCK (10.75)	VERSAMARK PAD (9.00)	BASICS WOW! EMBOSSING POWDER (20.00)

Today I'm sharing my design team card for our new challenge over at As you See It where we have a sketch challenge designed by Deborah:

This is a great sketch with so many creative possibilities! I decided to use up some of the diecuts from my Wildflower Birthday designer series paper pack for my card today - take a look:

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

Wildflower Birthday - The Wildflower Birthday Specialty Designer Series Paper is so beautiful. In addition to the beautiful foiled patterns, there are two whole sheets of diecuts that are useful for so many cards. I used a trio of flower clusters for my card and used the colours to tie in the other elements.  

Perennial Postage - I added each of my floral clusters to a diecut square cut with the Perennial Postage Dies, to which I'd added a hint of coordinating ink with a blending brush to lift it from the base. You can see that hint of colour more closely below:

Party Dots - I finished my card with a scattering of coordinating party dots and a sentiment from the 'Friends For Life' stamp set and left the inside blank as I want to use this card to write a longer message.

This card came together pretty quickly once I'd decided on which diecuts to use. I spent longer switching out pieces and trying to decide, than I did making it - with so much to choose from in the Wildflower birthday pack, I was spoiled for choice, for sure!

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

WILDFLOWER BIRTHDAY 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) SPECIALTY DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (16.00)	PERENNIAL POSTAGE DIES (31.00)	FRIENDS FOR LIFE PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (24.00)	PARTY DOTS (7.50)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (10.50)	PRETTY IN PINK A4 CARDSTOCK (10.75)
PRETTY IN PINK CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	POOL PARTY CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	BLUEBERRY BUSHEL CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	BLENDING BRUSHES (14.00)

It's Tuesday and time for a new challenge over at CAS Colours & Sketches. This week's challenge is a sketch challenge and Nancy has asked that we create a mini slimline card with any shape as the focal point:

Feel free to flip or rotate the sketch when making your card. For my card today I chose a sea turtle from the stamp set of the same name as the focal point for my mini slimline card - take a look:

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

I stamped my sea water bubbles in Azure Afternoon, overstamped with a couple of shoals of Calypso Coral fish and added a turtle that I fussy cut and popped on dimensionals:

A simple 'miss you' sentiment from the Friends For Life' stamp set completes my card. A simple stamps, ink and paper make for today - a quick and easy card!

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

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

Enjoy your day; I'm meeting a friend for a long-overdue catch up, which will be nice. I'll be back soon with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

SEA TURTLE PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (20.00)	FRIENDS FOR LIFE PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (24.00)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (10.50)	OLD OLIVE A4 CARDSTOCK (10.75)	MOSSY MEADOW CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	AZURE AFTERNOON CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)
CALYPSO CORAL CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)

Today I'm sharing my design team card for our new challenge over at As you See It where it's time for the oft-dreaded speed challenge:

This one was chosen by me: you have to create a card using a punch or punches, in under 10 minutes! I didn't have anything in mind when I chose this challenge, other than I wanted to use my Bee Builder Punch - but not necessarily to punch a bee! Thanks to a great sketch over at Sunday Stamps and the green and white colour combo over at Color Hues - perfect for the St Patricks Day inspired board at Festive Friday too ( I chose green, clover leaf and rainbow from the board) - the idea for my card came together pretty quickly too! Take a look at the card I created then read on for the detail:

 Here's the low-down on today's card:

Gather Your Supplies - The key to a speed stamping challenge is preparation - and this can be done before the stopwatch starts! I had my Bee Builder Punch and decided that the heart shape that forms the bee's wings would also be perfect for the basis of a lucky four-leaf clover. I wanted to keep things simple, so focused everything around one main green - Shaded Spruce. I grabbed that ink pad and some green cardstock, trawled through my (extensive!) designer paper collection for three papers I could use for those background layers that all featured Shaded Spruce as the primary colour (all 3 are retired) and grabbed those, grabbed a precut white card base and diecut circle - I keep a box of pre-cut white cardbases on my desk as these are the ones I use most, and a box of precut shapes for those I use the most and went on the hunt for a current stamp set with a 'lucky' sentiment - I settled on 'Country Flowers'. Here are my supplies, all ready to go:

I also had my embellishment box to hand, with any green or white ones at the front in case I wanted to add them at the end. Then I set my stopwatch - go, go, go!

Bee Builder Punch - My card is fairly straightforward: three overlapping panels of DSP, my Stylish Shapes diecut circle and the focal point: my four leaf clover, this is where my Bee Builder punch comes in! I punched 5 hearts from Shaded Spruce cardstock, overlapped four of them and cut a curved stem from the fifth one and glued them to the circle to create my lucky clover:

I added some green tinsel gems to cover the join and add some sparkle and used the 'best friend' sentiment for the front of my card, adding the 'lucky' one to the insde of my card:

I think it's fun to see what else you can use punches for, other than their main purpose. This isn't the first time I've used a punch or die to create a four leaf clover either - if you do a search on my blog, you will find many examples over the years!

The Result - So how long did my card take? An impressive 7 minutes and 51 seconds, even if I say so myself! 

The key is in the preparation - and keeping it simple, with minimal stamping. So what are your favourite ways to use your punches for a speedy card? Do leave me a comment below and better still, play along with our challenge 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 '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 and I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

BEE BUILDER PUNCH (23.00)	COUNTRY FLOWERS PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (23.00)	STYLISH SHAPES DIES (28.00)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (10.50)	SHADED SPRUCE A4 CARDSTOCK (10.75)	SHADED SPRUCE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)
TINSEL GEMS FOUR-PACK (7.50)

It's Tuesday and time for a new challenge over at CAS Colours & Sketches. Nancy is hosting this month and our first challenge is a colour challenge: 

What a great set of fresh and zingy colours! For my card today I'm also playing along with the 'anything CAS' challenge over at AAA Cards with the optional twist of spring/spring colours with a simple thank you card packed with spring floral details - take a look:

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

Thoughtful Moments - I decided to use the Thoughtful Moments Hybrid Embossing Folder and Dies for the sentiment on my card today as I haven't used them for ages! I inked my embossing folder with Berry Burst ink to get the word outline before embossing and diecutting, then used my Berry Burst Blends to create a dip-dyed ombre look, before adding to my card base. It's difficult to see in the photos, but the embossing adds a really nice detail to a clean and simple card.  

Pretty Petals - I decorated my sentiment with clusters of flowers, stamped using the Pretty Petals stamp set. I stamped the stems directly onto the card base, in a mix of the greens, then stamped the petals in Berry Burst and diecut them before adding with dimensionals for a little extra depth:

The Pretty Petals stamps have an almost watercoloured effect, giving them a soft, airy feel - perfect for spring. In addition to individual blooms, you can stamp and diecut larger elements too - check out the set in more detail by clicking on the link to the Online Exclusives section of the store in the product table below. What's more, both the stamps and dies are currently reduced - so you could pick up a bargain too!

Finishing Touches - A white baker's twine bow and trio of white faceted gems complete today's card.

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. 

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! color 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 later in the week with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

PRETTY PETALS PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (8.50)	PRETTY PETALS DIES (9.60)	THOUGHTFUL MOMENTS HYBRID EMBOSSING FOLDER (ENGLISH) (36.00)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (10.50)	BAKER'S TWINE ESSENTIALS PACK (10.25)	BERRY BURST CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)
BERRY BURST STAMPIN’ BLENDS COMBO PACK (10.25)	GRANNY APPLE GREEN CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)	LEMON LIME TWIST CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (8.50)