Just Kiddin Adventure Awaits FMS627

by Joanne James18. March 2024 11:30

No crafting time today but I do have a quick card to share using Karren's layout over at Freshly Made Sketches this week:

I didn't go slimline (largely because I was so fixated on making my card, I totally forgot about that bit - good job it was optional!) but I couldn't wait to use Karren's layout for another card featuring my favourite Just Kiddin' designer series paper - take a look:

 

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

I added a panel of Boho Blue embossed with the (retired) High Seas 3D Embossing Folder to the lower portion of my white cardfront, fussy cutting along the edge of the waves - I love the dimension that this adds and it picks up the detail from the fussy cut image. My trio sailing in their cardbox box boat make the perfect focal point and broadly follow the curved shape of Karren's semi circle:

 

A sentiment from then (retired) 'Beautiful World' was all that was needed to complete today's fun 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; mine is filled with domestic bliss - the price we pay for a weekend away, but I wouldn't have it any other way! I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used (current):

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

Paper Florist Lucky Clover For PP681

by Joanne James17. March 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 it's clean and simple challenge week with a 'good luck' theme:

    

Remember, this is a CLEAN and SIMPLE challenge.  When The Paper Players use the term “clean and simple”, we mean cards that:
  • Have minimal layers and embellishments
  • Have plenty of open space
  • Are simple and uncluttered

With two teens still in education where exams are a reasonably frequent occurence, I always need a supply of good luck cards on hand. Since it's St Patrick's Day next week and I haven't yet made a card featuring a shamrock or four leaf clover yet this year, I thought I'd take this opportunity to put that right. So today is all about the green - take a look:

 

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

I stamped my large 'Sending' sentiment from the 'Sending Smiles' stamp set in Shaded Spruce and finished with a truncated sentiment heat embossed in gold beneath it. I decorated my card with a cascade of lucky four leaf clovers, made from the Paper Florist Dies. I popped them up on dimensionals to make the standout a little too:

 

Simple, clean and full of luck - box ticked! I'm also linking today's card up over at Inkspirational where they are also celebrating all things clean and simple (no optional balloon for me though!)

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 enjoying a rare weekend away and will be visiting the eldest of the James Juniors today, which I am looking forward to - it's been a while! 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.

Painted Lavender CAS Notecards AYSI319

by Joanne James15. March 2024 13:00

Today I'm sharing my design team card for our new challenge over at As you See It where it's time for the dreaded speed challenge, with the theme chosen by Deborah:

 

Spring flowers - how lovely it is to see them starting to appear in the garden! My daffodils are out and my tulips and lavender are coming along behind. My lavender in the garden doesn't usually bloom until late spring, so I'm taking the opportunity to create some of my own whilst I wait!

This week is speed stamping week, where we need to gather our supplies, set our timers and create our cards in 10 minutes or less. Being the designer series paper fan that I am, it's not uncommon for me to reach for some when I need to make a big impact in a hurry, however I've used designer paper for the last few speed challegnes so today I thought I'd challenge myself to stick to stamping only (ok, with maybe a little diecutting!) When you need a speedy card, the main thing needs to be to keep things simple - and be very organised! So here are my supplies laid out before I started:

 

Stamps mounted, ink cases opened, timer set - and go! This is the finished card that I created:

 

Now for the details! Here's the low-down on today's card:

Painted Lavender Speed Stamping - I used the tiny lavender stems from the 'Painted Lavender' stamp set on my card today - I think this is my favourite stamp in the set. It's great for quick stamping: I diecut my postage stamp first, then stamped the stems in Shaded Spruce, followed by the flowers - first two in Highland Heather then two in Gorgeous Grape (by doing light then dark, I didn't need to clean my stamp in between - another time-saving tip!). So easy to position as it's photopolymer, so you can see exactly where you're stamping. For my base, I used one of the Stampin' Up! white notecards and envelopes - another time saver, as no cutting required! I stamped my sentiment directly onto my notecard base, then added a snippet of ribbon to the back of my stamped diecut before adhering to my notecard using dimensionals. Finally, I added a couple of brass butterflies for a little extra embellishment:

 

 How long did all this take? Just 3 minutes and 38 seconds! So with so much extra time to go, I added some stamped butterflies to the inside of my card and added the same lavender design to the front of my envelope too before calling it a day. Total time used: 

 

Less than 5 minutes for the win - result!

The Multiplier Effect - At under 5 minutes, this little notecard is a great speedy make. You could even shave a little time off that total by stamping the envelope and the same time as the diecut, rather than afterwards. Which brings me to my next point - cards that are quick to create but still showcase lots of new products are just what I'm looking for when I'm making multiples to send out to my customers with a new catalogue. And that may just be where today's card came from; I haven't shared it until now, but these were the cards that my customers received in the post with their mini catalogues before they launched in January. Here's a quick shot of some of them laid out together:

 

Lots of lavender loveliness!

Make It With Me - Now this is where you might think me completely mad: I haven't made a video for you in a while and I chuckled when my friend and fellow teamie Jan mentioned that had decided to video her undertaking her speed stamping challenge. Whilst I did think her rather mad, the more I thought about it, I decided I'd have a go too. I haven't made a video in ages so be kind! So here you go:

Room for improvement to be sure, but I hope you found it useful. 

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:

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

Cheerful Critters Easter Cards

by Joanne James15. March 2024 09:00

Today I have a double post day! I'll be back later with my card for our new challenge over at As You See It, but first I'm guesting over at CAS on Friday! I won Challenge 277 with this card, so I was asked to join the ladies as their guest this week for their new challenge where the theme is 'Easter'. I'm a little thin on current Easter-themed supplies, so I dug into my retired stash for some old sets that I could use in a new way. Here's my card for the new CAS on Friday challenge that also uses the colours over at Color Throwdown this week: 

 

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

I've always loved the little sign-holding characters in the retired 'Cute Critters' stamp set and I thought that the bunny would make a cute clean and simple Easter card when combined with a suitable sentiment. For my bunny I paired her with a sentiment from the retired 'Basket Bunch' stamp set and simply coloured with my Stampin' Blends:

 

Perfect for a simple card to accompany an Easter egg gift.

I had so much fun with this card that I decided to make another slightly stepped-up version using the chick in the 'Cheerful Critters' set, this time featuring the colours over at Hand Stamped Sentiments:

 

I backed my card with a piece of Inked Botanicals plaid paper and used one of the Everyday Details Dies to diecut my stamped and coloured panel, with a sentiment from the another retired stamp set, 'Arrange A Wreath':

 

I'm also linking my second card up over at SUO Challenges where the theme is also Easter/Spring.

This was a fun dip into the retirement box to use some old stamps in new ways. Do you ever do this? Do leave me a comment below - I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Enjoy your morning and I'll be back later with my card for our new challenge over at As You See It. Until then, happy stampin'!

       

 

Notes of Nature Lovely and Sweet Vanilla Sympathy Cards

by Joanne James11. March 2024 13:00

Today I'm sharing a couple of cards for a couple of challenges, the second having evolved from the first! Both cards use the layout over at Freshly Made Sketches and the first one uses the colours over at Color Throwdown:

    

I'm a big fan of the work of the lovely Cecile who is responsible for the FMS sketch this week, so having not managed to play along for a few weeks I couldn't resist squeezing in an entry today. Both cards use the new-to-me Lovely & Sweet stamp set from the current mini catalogue - here's the first one:

 

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

I thought this colour palette would work well for the vanilla image in the set, so I diecut and coloured the image in the challenge colours with my Stampin' Blends and added to my offset diecut semi-circles (more on those in a moment!) along with a sentiment from the same set - I thought this soft colour palette would suit a sympathy card. A few sparkly gems add a finishing touch:

 

Having finished this card, I really wanted to pair the peach and vanilla with touches of brown; technically not the correct colouring for fresh vanilla, but I wanted to switch things up so created this second version:

 

I flipped the colours here and used the peach for the semi-circles, adding some background stamping in Pecan Pie and stamping my vanilla image and sentiment in Early Espresso, with a few toning sequins to finish:

 

This card is my favourite for sure, so this is the one I'll link up over at Freshly Made Sketches, but I'd love to hear which one you prefer - do leave me a comment below with your thoughts. 

 

Before I forget - a tip for you regarding those stitched semi-circles! If like me you don't have semi-circle dies, you can easily use a circle from the Stylish Shapes Dies that you cut in half using the edge of one of the square dies in the same set; just make sure to repeat the process on the straight edge of both semi-circles (the stitching design is different depending on whether or not it is inside or outside the frame - if you take a close look at the dies, you'll see what I mean).

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. 

Enjoy your day; I'm feeling a little grey today, much like the weather so I think I'll be spending the day in my craft room. 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.

Textured Floral In Pinks and Yellows PP680

by Joanne James10. March 2024 08:00

Today it's Sunday and time for this week's new challenge over at The Paper Players! Happy Mother's Day to all the UK Mums out there! It's the turn of our globe-trotting team member Jaydee to host this week and she has a colour challenge for us to work with:

       

I used the sketch over at Tuesday Morning Sketches for my layout (the large yellow flowers represent the hexagons) and went down the right hand column of the board over at TicTacToe Challenge with floral/embossing (I heat embossed my sentiment)/favourite colour (mine is yellow) and decided to create a large card full of bright and cheery florals - take a look:

 

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

I decided to use my 'Textured Floral' stamp set and coordinating dies since they haven't seen much love lately, and stamped a collection of flowers and greenery. Since we are using generic colours this week, I used a couple of shades of yellow and pink for my flowers to add interest. I added Daffodil Delight ink to my central panel with a blending brush along with some splatters, before adding my florals. To bring out the black and white elements, I added in some extra diecut foliage and a twist of gingham ribbon behind my sentiment label:

I do love the contrast of the neutrals with the bright colours! A few colourful sequins and gems complete the front of my card; I also added some of my leftover florals to decorate the inside of my card:

 

This card is larger than usual (it is A5 in size) with lots of dimension - it will make a lovely birthday card for someone special. The Textured Floral bundle is beautiful for blousy floral displays - I really should use it more often!

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; since it's Mother's Day here in the UK today, I am looking forward to a roast dinner and being spoiled by the youngest of the James Juniors! 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.

Lavender Blue Dilly Dilly CCS532

by Joanne James5. March 2024 13:00

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

  

For my colour palette today, I chose the most recent addition to my ink pad collection (Azure Afternoon), the very first ink pad I ever purchased (Old Olive) and Balmy Blue to balance the mix. Just like the lullaby that inspired the title of today's blog post, I thought these colours would be perfect for lavender, so I grabbed my 'Painted Lavender' stamp set and my Perennial Postage bundle and set to work. This is what I came up with: 

 

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

Painted Lavender - I chose the tiny lavender sprigs to feature on two of my three postage die pieces, repeat stamping them in Azure Afternoon and Old Olive to fill the space. 

Masked Perennial Postage - To give the appearance of a postage stamp, I masked off the edges of my diecut and then used a blending brush to add a Balmy Blue 'sky' to the centre of the rectangle, blending from top to bottom. I then removed the masking tape to reveal the crisp, white borders - lovely! 

Inked Embossing - I stamped my sentiment on the central diecut piece, off-centering it so that I could add an embossed postmark. This die is from the Perennial Postage Dies; to make it standout I added Balmy Blue ink to the die before embossing it onto the diecut, so that it leaves both and inked and embossed detail; you can see it more closely below:

I love the addition of the postmark - such a neat detail! I used a strip of Azure Afternoon cardstock to bring my 3 postage diecuts together and 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! 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:

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

Rainy Days Are Better With You PP679

by Joanne James3. March 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 Claire to host this week and she has a fun theme challenge for us to work with:

 

This theme couldn't be more appropriate for the British weather, especially this past few days, when once again it has, as the expression goes, been raining cats and dogs once again! My cheery little bunny isn't put off though - take a look:

 

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

Rainy Days - My bunny and sentiment come from the 'Playing In The Rain' stamp set and are cut out with the coordinating Playing In The Rain Dies. I coloured him with my Blends markers and gave him a green jacket to pick up the colours in the background paper.

Sunny Days - I know Sale-A-Bration is now over, but the Sunny Days papers were just perfect for today's card. I used a background of clouds and rain, then used a sun-patterned piece to cut out an abstract sun to tuck behind the clouds.

Collage Cute - I added a mix of stitched clouds, a ribbon tab and a mix of sparkly raindrops, enamel dots and sequins and layered them up to give my card a fun, collage feel:

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 have no big plans today, maybe some baking and if I'm lucky a little creative time. One thing's for sure - it will be too wet for gardening! All being well I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Countryside Inn Easter Card AYSI318

by Joanne James1. March 2024 13:00

It's the 1st of March: Sale-A-Bration is over for another year and to any fellow Welsh readers out there - Happy St David's Day! No daffodils here though; today I'm sharing my design team card for our new challenge over at As you See It where it's time for a seasonal theme challenge chosen by me:

 

I thought Easter would be a good theme for our challenge this week given that it's at the end of this month, although it did mean I had to get creative as I haven't purchased any new Easter sets and I don't have the Easter Bunny set in the annual catalogue either. Never fear though - I got creative! This is what I came up with:

 

 Here's the low-down on today's card:

Countryside Inn - I noticed that one of the papers in the Countryside Inn pack has a rabbit in the pattern that I thought would make a sweet background for an Easter card and this set the tone for my whole card. I used a Boho Blue card base and balanced it with another of the patterns in the pack.  

Easter Bunny - I used a simple white rabbit punched with the Easter Bunny Punch as my focal point and stamped my greeting onto it directly - for those of you that picked up the 'Heartfelt Hellos' stamp set during Sale-A-Bration, this is where this sentiment comes from. A trimmed ribbon bow was all the decoration my rabbit needed: 

 

Everyday Details - You may recognise the layout of my card: it's this week's Paper Players layout that I used for my card on Sunday. The rabbit is in place of the hot air balloon, and on today's card instead of a row of clouds, I created a layered border using one of the Everyday Details Dies, adding pearls to the diamond centres for a little added detail.

I'm pleased with how my card finished up; it's also a great way to show how the same layout can be used in different ways. 

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

Enjoy your day; I am taking a well-earned break today following my final trips to both my local charity shop and waste tip respectively, which signify the end of my loft clearance project this week. Hopefully I will make it back into my craft room and I'll have something to come back and share with you tomorrow. Until then, happy stampin'!

 

Just Kiddin CAS Birthday Card For Boys

by Joanne James27. February 2024 20:20

Good evening everyone! I am spending the week clearing out my loft (a job long overdue!) so today I'm sharing a quick clean and simple card for a couple of challenges:

 

AAA Cards would like anything CAS with the optional twist of birthday, so I did both and also went with the CAS on Friday theme of male/boy. I made a fun, cute card for a little boy who is celebrating his birthday - take a look:

 

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

I created a subtle sweep of Azure Afternoon ink to highlight my sweet hula-hooper that I fussy cut from the Just Kiddin' designer series paper, adding some stamped hearts and stars in the same colour:

 

A simple sentiment from the 'Hooray For Surprises' set completes my card. Just a few key items needed to create this super cute 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 evening and I'll be back later this week with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

 

Mini Catalogue

BROWSE THE CATALOGUE

The mini catalogue is now live! Read and download your copy here.

Shop Online

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

Current March hostess code:

S9F2XJJW

Shop Online

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! 

Latest Kit!

Stampin Cut and Emboss

The Rock Legend Kit has all you need to make 8 cards with coordinating envelopes. Along with the new Panda Friends Kit, both are available from January 4th for just £14 each - get yours here!

2023-24 Annual Catalogue

BROWSE THE CATALOGUE

Click on the catalogue for a full list of current SU! supplies - if you would like to order any of the items featured, please drop me a line at [email protected] or give me a call on 07773 421446 - I'd be happy to help.

New Online Exclusives

There will be new products available exclusively in the online store from 5 March - check them out here.

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.