Beach Day Enjoy Today Birthday Card AYSI326

by Joanne James5. July 2024 12:00

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

       

I chose this inspiration picture ages ago so didn't have anything in mind at the time, but when it came to create my card today I really felt like these colours would suit something bright and summery, so I grabbed my Beach Day stamp set and dies and set to work. I used the fab sketch over at Sunday Stamps for my layout (I mirrored it on the long side, because I wanted my palm trees to follow the line of the circle) and set about creating a fun beach scene. Take a look at what I came up with:

 

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

I grabbed a piece of (retired) striped in-colour designer paper for my background, then diecut a circle and built my beach scene. This is mostly a collection of dicuts - the only stamping is the sentiment and the grains and shells stamped on the Crumb Cake 'sand' - and I threaded my lifesaver with a scrap of yellow sparkly twine I found in my scraps box for an extra little detail:

I added a birthday sentiment to the inside and am planning on using this for a masculine birthday that I have coming up soon, as I think it works without being stereotypically manly (if you know what I mean!). I'm also linking today's card up at Inspire.Create where the theme is 'summer'.

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 Recipe Challenge use all elements of the recipe - the possibilities within those parameters are endless.
  • 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.
  • 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.
We look forward to seeing your creations in the AYSI gallery.

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

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Table built using Product Table Builder by The Crafty Owl - Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator.

Friends For Life Lifesaver Thank You Card PP696

by Joanne James3. July 2024 18:00

Hello! Apologies for my unscheduled blog absence; things have been very busy in the James household lately and it has kept me out of my craft room. My regular readers will have noticed that I did not play along with my team mates over at The Paper Players on Sunday as usual; I finally managed to get into my craft room today so decided to make a card that worked with Anne Marie's fun tic-tac-toe board, that as it happens also allows me to squeak in a card for Just Us Girls this week where it's stencil week. I'm also linking up over at Inkspirational as they are featuring stencils too: 

       

I went across the top row of Anne Marie's tic-tac-toe board with stars/stripes (I chose stripes), bling (sequins) and blue and actually took some of my inspiration from this card by Carol over at JUGS for a summer-themed thank you card - take a look:

 

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

I used a retired stencil that I found in my stash to create what I am hoping looks like pool water splashes on my card base in (retired) Tahitian Tide ink, then using some stitched circle dies, created my lifesaver, decorated with some striped designer paper and twine rope detail. I had to get creative with my sentiment, as I didn't have a stamp to suit, so I used a combination of stamps from the 'Friends For Life' set and the word 'lifesaver' cut using the Mini Alphabet Dies:

 

A few sparkly blue sequins to catch the light complete my card. So what do you think - does the stencil effect work as water droplets? It's so much fun to rediscover old stencils or make your own to create fun cards.

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. 

You've still time to play along in this week's Paper Players challenge; why not check out what our amazing team has created to inspire you this week:

Here's a quick recap of our challenge rules:
 
1.  Create a new paper project
2.  Upload your creation to your blog with a link back to us and provide a direct link to the post featuring your challenge submission.
3.  Please link your card to no more than four challenges, TOTAL.
4.  Have FUN!

Enjoy your evening; I'll be back on Friday with another project and also a separate post with lots of new specials for the month of July . Until then, happy stampin'!

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

Table built using Product Table Builder by The Crafty Owl - Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator.

Frames & Flowers Sympathy Card

by Joanne James24. June 2024 08:00

Today I'm sharing a card that uses this week's sketch over at Just Add Ink and is super clean and simple and also plays to CAS on Friday's current nature theme:

I unfortunately need a sympathy card this week and as I still had the Frames & Flowers papers on my desk from making yesterday's card, it occurred to me that one of the partial wreath diecuts with its simple string of leaves would fit the sketch perfectly:

 

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

I added my sentiment from the Country Flowers stamp set in Pretty Peacock and added a trio of co-ordinating enamel dots to a Granny Apple Green cardbase:

The leaves in the wreath co-ordinate with a wide range of colours and I chose Granny Apple Green as opposed to Lost Lagoon which has been my 'go to' with these papers up to now, as I wanted something brighter and more uplifting and I really like the effect. The Frames & Flowers papers really do make light work of clean and simple card designs - I love them!

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

 

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

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

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Table built using Product Table Builder by The Crafty Owl - Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator.

Frames & Flowers Framed Thank You Card PP695

by Joanne James23. June 2024 08:00

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

 

I wrestled with this sketch for a while, as I couldn't decide how best to make a feature of the frame - and then I remembered my Frames & Flowers designer papers, and problem solved - my card came together in no time! Take a look at what I came up with:

 

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

I did take a little liberty with Ann's sketch, in as much as I flipped the layers as I wanted my frame to be the top layer so that the diecut leaf detail was visible. I extended the mat layer and Old Olive strip beyond the frame, the placed my sentiment and diecut circle on top of that:

I went for a simple thank you sentiment from the 'Spotlight on Nature' stamp set onto a pretty circle cut using one of the co-ordinating dies. These circle dies are so useful and all of them have beautiful diecut border details. If you don't have this bundle, it's one well worth adding to your collection this month whilst there's an extra 10% off bundles. A few sequins and a twine bow 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 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:

Here's a quick recap of our challenge rules:
 
1.  Create a new paper project
2.  Upload your creation to your blog with a link back to us and provide a direct link to the post featuring your challenge submission.
3.  Please link your card to no more than four challenges, TOTAL.
4.  Have FUN!

Enjoy your day; I am taking the youngest of the James Juniors to Silverstone racetrack today for a driving course for young learners run by our local police force - should be fun! I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

 

Table built using Product Table Builder by The Crafty Owl - Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator.

Spotlight on Nature Card For A Friend

by Joanne James22. June 2024 15:00

Today I'm sharing a card that I made for the current Inkspiration Colour Challenge that uses the current Atlantic Hearts sketch layout:  

 May be an image of text     

I'm also playing along over at TicTacToe Challenge (I went across the first row with friendship theme/gems/layers) and decided to use this fresh colour combo to give my 'Spotlight on nature' stamp set a good workout - take a look:

 

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

I stamped the flower stem at opposing ends of a scalloped rectangle cut using my (retired) Scalloped Contours Dies, with the sentiment in between and coloured them with my Stampin' Blends. The most interesting part of today's card though is the butterflies: I stamped one directly from the set, them stamped another in it's mirror image and a third one that combined the two - you can see that one more closely below:

 

Have you ever done mirror stamping? The easiest way to do it is to use a stamping platform and a silicone mat; you simply stamp the image you want to reverse directly onto the silicone mat, carefully lay your cardstock over the silicone mat and then stamp the image again. The pressure of this stamp transfers the ink from the silicone mat onto the reverse of the cardstock and hey presto - a reversed image! To avoid having 4 antenna, you need to just remove the ink from one of each pair each time you stamp, but otherwise that's it. I brushed my butterflies liberally with clear Wink of Stella before fussy cutting and adding to my rectangle along with a trio of sparkly in-colour gems in Pretty In Pink. I added this to a Pretty In Pink card base, onto which I'd added a strip of black and white striped retired designer paper - very Audrey Hepburn-inspired! I love the line detail on the 'Spotlight On Nature' stamps and I can't wait to experiment more with this set.

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 off outside to enjoy the sunshine! - and I'll be back tomorrow with another project for our new challenge over at The Paper Players. Until then, happy stampin'!

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Table built using Product Table Builder by The Crafty Owl - Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator.

A Little Latte Thank You AYSI326

by Joanne James21. June 2024 08:00

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

 

I knew that I wanted to use two pieces of co-ordinating designer series paper for those layers, so I decided to make another card with the Online Exclusives Latte Love bundle and the A Little Latte designer series papers that I used earlier this week. Here's what I came up with:

 

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

My card really is all about the A Little Latte designer paper: I used it it for both of my layers, with a colourful plaid for my base and a coffee splattered top layer. This provided the perfect base for my pair of coffee cups, fussy cut by hand from another sheet of paper:

I popped these up on dimensionals and added a thank you sentiment from the 'Latte Love' stamp set, anchored with a Calypso Coral-coloured rainbow enamel dot. This turned out to be a really simple card - quick and easy to duplicate so perfect for my customer thank you cards this month.

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.
We look forward to seeing your creations in the AYSI gallery.

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

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Table built using Product Table Builder by The Crafty Owl - Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator.

Latte Love CAS Slimline CCS 539

by Joanne James18. June 2024 13:00

This week's challenge is a sketch challenge and Shannon has asked that we create a slimline card with a banner focal point. Feel free to flip or rotate the sketch when making your card.

    

I haven't made a slimline card in a while so today's card made a pleasant change. Also - what to do with all those circles, whilst still keeping things clean and simple? I decided to showcase a bundle from the Online Exclusives, Latte Love, that is just one of those that you can get with an additional 10% off this month. Take a look at what I came up with:

 

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

I thought that those circles would work really well as coffee cups, so cut a banner from the A Little Latte designer series paper, along with a trio of coffee cups, all showcasing different coffee art, and tucked them around my banner. I stamped some coffee rings and splatters in Pecan Pie and added a few adhesive backed swirl dots, finishing with one of the sentiments in the set:

This would make a great card for a friend you haven't seen in a while - who doesn't love a good coffee and catch up, right? Better still when you can get the bundle to make this card at a total of 20% off this month; why, it's almost rude not to!

I'm also playing along with my good friends over at TicTacToe Challenge this week - I went down the first column of Jeanie's board with layers, diecut and patterned paper.

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

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Table built using Product Table Builder by The Crafty Owl - Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator.

Country Flowers In Yellow and Blue PP693

by Joanne James9. June 2024 08:00

Today it's Sunday and time for this week's new challenge over at The Paper Players! It's my turn to host this week and I have a pretty colour challenge for us to work with:

    

When I chose these colours, I didn't have anything in particular in mind - I just love the combination of blue and yellow. That said, when it came down to it I had no idea how to use them - go figure! After playing around with a few ideas, I finally settled on some slightly unconventionally coloured florals using the Country Flowers bundle. I loved Amy's sketch over at Freshly Made Sketches this week so I used that for my layout and set to work. This is what I came up with:

 

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

Eyelet Embossing - I decided to use a Lemon Lolly card base and embossed the whole of the card front using the new Eyelet 3D embossing folder. I love the design of this folder and I love the texture and detail it adds to a project.

Countryside Inn - I used a small panel of Countryside Inn designer series paper in Night of Navy for one of the rectangle elements of the sketch. Did you realise that the Countryside Inn paper is still available? It's one of a few that carried over from last year's annual catalogue. The pattern is subtle and doesn't look out of place with the embossed background detail.

Country Flowers - The focal point for today's card is my bucket of flowers from the 'Country Flowers' stamp set. I used the three challenge colours for my unconventional floral bouquet, along with some additional diecut white leaves and flowers, and used Smoky Slate as my fourth colour for my metal bucket that they are standing in - check out the detail below:

I finished my card with a sentiment from the same set, wrapped with a little Boho Blue thread pulled from a ribbon to anchor it.

The Country Flowers bundle is one of those that is discounted by a further 10% until the end of June - that's in addition to the usual 10% bundle discount, so a whopping 20% off. There's never been a better time to add a bundle to your shopping basket!

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:

Here's a quick recap of our challenge rules:
 
1.  Create a new paper project
2.  Upload your creation to your blog with a link back to us and provide a direct link to the post featuring your challenge submission.
3.  Please link your card to no more than four challenges, TOTAL.
4.  Have FUN!

Enjoy your day; I'll be back later this week with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

Table built using Product Table Builder by The Crafty Owl - Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator.

Frames And Flowers Quickest Ever Thank You Card For AYSI325

by Joanne James7. June 2024 12:00

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

 

Thank you cards! I use thank you cards more than any other kind of card and it's good to have some speedy designs on hand. I was actually a little short on crafty time this week so speed stamping week couldn't have come at a better time! I knew exactly where I was headed for my quick card - take a look at what I came up with and then I'll fill you in on the details:

 

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

Ready, Set ... - As we always say with a speed challenge, preparation is key. Think about your design and gather your supplies before the timer starts - this will make for a quicker execution. Mount your stamps, open your ink pads and you will be ready to start with the stopwatch. Here are all my supplies, in addition to my Tombo glue and trimmer, which is just out of view:

 

For a really quick card think about shortcuts - my shortcut on today's card is the Frames & Flowers designer series paper. The precut die-cut designs in the pack are a huge timesaver - a ready made decoration. I chose a sheet of patterned paper for my background, then one of the co-ordinating large foliage diecuts that had space for a printed sentiment.

Go! - Now to the timed action! I took my card base and added a pieces of designer series paper to the front of it. I then stamped the word 'thanks' in Pretty Peacock across the centre of the diecut (I used the retired 'Biggest Wish' stamp set but I've included a shop link below to a current one that would make a great alternative) the added this to the centre of my card base, using dimensionals:

 

I finished with a selection of co-ordinating gems to finish my card.

Result - That's all there is to it - a great #simplestamping card where the designer paper definitely takes the strain! How long did it take to make this card? 

Just 2 minutes and 42 seconds - at that speed, you could even make multiples in the space of 10 minutes! The Frames & Flowers papers really are fabulous and great for all kinds of speedy cards; at £9.50 for a pack, they're super reasonable 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. 
We look forward to seeing your creations in the AYSI gallery.

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

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Shop link to the Frames & Flowers 12" x 12" Designer Series Paper £9.50: click here

Table built using Product Table Builder by The Crafty Owl - Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator.

CAS Balloon Trio Birthday Card

by Joanne James5. June 2024 08:00

Today I'm sharing a clean and simple card that I made for the following challenges:

      

The sketch over at AAACards was perfect for a trio of balloons, the code word at Addicted to CAS this week and I had to use the trio of colours over at Color Dare since they are celebrating their 12 year anniversary - what an achievement! Here's the clean and simple card I made for the occasion:

 

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

I used an acetate sheet to create a stencil using my retired Balloon Bouquet Punch, then using my blending brushes added three balloons in the challenge colours, overlapping them to form a cluster. I used a retired stamp set to add some balloon strings in Encore silver ink, then finished my card with 'celebrate' sentiment cut from silver foil using my Wanted To Say Dies, and layered on vellum:

 

I originally made a version of this card where I added some stencilled confetti in silver, but thought it looked too 'busy', so I made a second one that is very clean - I much prefer it! This is a great standby birthday card design that could be made in any colour combo and would suit pretty much any participant - I might have to make a few more!

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:

Table built using Product Table Builder by The Crafty Owl - Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator.

New Online Exclusives

There are new products available exclusively in the online store from 5 November - check them out here.

Latest Kits!

Stampin Cut and Emboss

The Perpetual Beauty Calendar Kit and Cherry Blossoms Treat Boxes Kit are the latest kits in the online store - get yours here!

Shop Online

Access my online shop 24 x 7, 365 days of the year:

Current December hostess code:

9NKXDTTR

Shop Online

Mini Catalogue

BROWSE THE CATALOGUE

'Tis The Season - the new Stampin' Up! Mini Catalogue is here! For more details and to download your copy click here

Scrapbooking

Stampin' Up! has introduced a new range of 12x12" scrapbooking product and kit - the full range is now available to purchase online. To download a copy of the new digital Scrapbooking Catalogue click here.

2024-25 Annual Catalogue

BROWSE THE CATALOGUE

Click on the image to download your copy of the 2024-25 annual catalogue. For a full list of current SU! supplies, go to my online store. If you would like any help or advice, please drop me a line at joanne@thecraftyowl.co.uk or give me a call on 07773 421446 - I'd be happy to help.

Join My Team

It's always a great time to join Stampin’ Up! New team members can get £130 worth of products for only £99 + free business supplies + free shipping + all the fun being a part of Stampin’ Up! Stampin' Up! has something for everyone: join my growing team and benefit from my support to enjoy Stampin' Up! however you choose.

If you're interested, call me for a chat to understand how I can help you realise your goals. Alternatively, if you have already decided to sign up and you just can't wait, please click here for the link to the online form where you can sign up and order your starter kit right away! 

About Me

Hi I'm Joanne and live in Northampton and when I'm not looking after my husband and two beautiful children, am an avid crafter with a passion for all things Stampin' Up!

I must confess that I have never been a big rubber stamper - until I discovered Stampin' Up! that is. I love the fact that I can get such great results with co-ordinating stamps, inks, papers and punches - the possibilities are endless! Join me on my stamping journey as I share the things I love and be inspired to create amazing things yourself!

Follow Me

Monthly Newsletter

Box Builder

Click the button above to use Box Buster to create your custom box design using the Envelope Punch Board!

Kits Collection Now Available!

Stampin Cut and Emboss

The new Kits Collection from Stampin' Up! is now available!

Click here to see the current kits available and order yours online today.

I Design For

 

 

 

Stampin' Up Stuff

This is my personal blog and is not endorsed by Stampin’ Up! I hope you find it a plentiful source of ideas and personal inspiration but please don't copy my designs for contest submission or use for classes, publication or sale without express permission.

DSP Special Release

Check out 3 popular designer series paper designs in fresh new colourways! Available exclusively in the online store from 3 December - check them out here

Last Chance Products

Last Chance Products will now be updated every other month - check them out here.