Winter Meadow Christmas Deer PP668

by Joanne James26. November 2023 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 had the idea that the central panel would be a great way to showcase one of the Winter Meadow designer series paper designs - take a look:

 

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

One of the designs in the Winter Meadow designer series paper pack has a deer pattern that can be split into 6 and used as card fronts. I took the one that had the deer on the right hand side of the panel and cut it down to fit my central rectangle. I added a background panel of Moody Mauve and scored in the diagonal lines (these are quite difficult to see in the photos I'm afraid, but add a lovely subtle detail in real life) and fussy cut a couple of berry stems from another of the sheets in the paper pack to decorate my sentiment, which is from the 'Brightest Glow' stamp set and cut with one of the Labels Aglow dies:

I really liked this card, although I did think that I lost a lot of the impact of the deer panel once I'd cut it down. Whilst I had the papers out on my desk, I decided to make a second card using another panel of the deer paper, this time using Kim's open layout over at Freshly Made Sketches this week:

I cut the single panel into three and built up the central section with a couple of layers of black and white cardstock, adding my sentiment from the 'Christmas Classics' stamp set onto a stitched label:

 

I let the paper do all the work as far as this card is concerned and added only a trio of three pale silver sequins to complete my card:

 

So two cards for you today - hope you like them! I'm also linking my first card up over at Time Out Challenges where the current challenge is Winter/Holiday.

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 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 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.

 

More Wishes Festive Fun Framed Card FF0148

by Joanne James24. November 2023 09:00

Today I have my card for the new challenge over at Festive Friday Card Making and Paper Crafting Challenge

    

The challenge that we are celebrating this week is 'International Animal Rights Day' which is on 10th December. Remember the fun thing is that at Festive Friday you do not need to actually celebrate the occasion; your goal is to simply use three or more items from the inspiration list on your project. This week I used alcohol markers, animals/critters/birds and stripes and I combined both the 'make a statement' and sketch inspiration over at Try Stamping On Tuesday for my card and this is what I came up with:

 

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

More Wishes - Ordinarily if I was going to use a large sentiment, I would make this the central focal point of my card, but the layout over at Try Stamping on Tuesday had me intrigued and I wondered if I could instead use my bold sentiment to frame my illustration. The 'More Wishes' stamp set is perfect for this approach: it's just wide enough to create a frame whilst still leaving a central aperture. I did need to get creative with my choice of sentiment and how I laid it out across the four frame elements; as you can see, my repeated sentiment actually starts and ends on the long side. I added a cute robin from 'Festive & Fun' to delineate - I think it works but I'd love to know what you think!

Festive & Fun - I chose one of the images from 'Festive & Fun' to fill the centre of my frame, stamping it in Memento Black and colouring with my Stampin' Blends to co-ordinate with my frame:

Bold Colour - My colour scheme was inspired by the palette over at Global Design Project #GDP421 this week. I stamped the words on my frame using my Stamparatus and stamped them several times each to get a good, solid ink coverage. This does make the colours slightly darker and more intense; I actually really like this colour combination for a modern, festive Christmas 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. 

How does our board inspire you? I can’t wait to see what YOU create! For more inspiration, be sure to visit the rest of the Festive Friday Card Making and Paper Crafting Challenge Design team:

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.

Clean and Simple Candy Cane Wishes

by Joanne James22. November 2023 09:00

Today I'm sharing a card using the current layout over at CAS on Sunday that was inspired by the candy-can colours and festive mood board over at Just Us Girls:

   

I couldn't resist that colour palette over at Just Us Girls and so much festive inspiration! I had a couple of candy canes cut from retired Sweetest Christmas designer paper in my stash, so decided to use them as the basis for a clean and simple card - take a look:

 

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

I added my candy canes to some solid colour banners and a circle that picked up the challenge colours and added a sprig of stamped mistletoe with a trio of pearls and twine bow, along with a sentiment from the retired 'Sweet Candy Canes' stamp set:

 

A trio of in-colour enamel dots complete my card. Quite a simple card and would be quick to run off in multiples too - I 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 '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.

Joy Of Noel CAS Christmas Tag Card PP667

by Joanne James19. November 2023 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 LeAnne to host this week and she has a fun clean and simple challenge for us to work with:

 

Make a tag or feature a tag on your project - just remember to keep it clean and simple! I had another vellum idea I wanted to try out and LeAnne's challenge today gave me the perfect opportunity - take a look:

 

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

First things first: I used a piece of retired Expressions In Ink Specialty Designer Series Paper for my card base for ease, but you could easily recreate this alcohol ink effect using some Stampin' Blends and drops of rubbing alcohol. I then cut my tag shape out of the centre of my designer paper panel, before gluing it to my white cardbase (minus the tag). I cut 5 extra tags out of white carstock and added these behind the DSP one, so that when they were glued back into the space the stacked tag would have added depth. I cut another tag out of vellum (I used a scrap of Shaded Spruce for the reinforcer) and stamped the large foliage stamp from the 'Joy of Noel' stamp set in Versamark off the edge and heat embossed it in gold. When it is added (tied not glued) to the tag stack I created earlier, the design is clear and the vellum softens the alcohol ink effect on the tag below:

A gold heat embossed sentiment from the 'Christmas Classics' stamp set, along with some gold elegant trim and a trio of festive pearls, complete my card. 

I really like the finished effect - minimal layers and embellishments, lots of white space and enough gold to add a little festive flair. The foliage stamp in the 'Joy of Noel' stamp set is so versatile - although it's a line stamp, it doesn't have to be coloured - there are so many different ways to use it. If you would like even more inspiration using the 'Joy of Noel' stamp set, you can search my blog for lots more examples or better still, this is the bundle that features in this month's 'Join In With Joanne and Jan' tutorial that I have created with my NZ friend, the lovely Jan Clothier - if you purchase this bundle from me this month you will receive our  tutorial for FREE with full instructions for 4 additional projects using this fabulous set.

Back to today's project! 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'm also linking today's project up over at Less Is More where the theme is 'anything CAS goes'. 

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; it's a rather wet and miserable weekend here so I will be staying indoors today I think - maybe some festive baking will be on the cards! 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.

Christmas Pinecones Peace on Earth

by Joanne James13. November 2023 12:22

Happy Monday everyone! We are another week closer to Christmas, so no surprises that today I'm sharing a card for the occasion! I took my inspiration from the crate of pinecones on the Hand Stamped Sentiments  inspiration photo below:

I diecut some pinecones and greenery using the Christmas Pinecone Dies and snipped a section to frame my sentiment from the 'Christmas Classics' stamp set - take a look:

 

I used a piece of retired Painted Christmas designer series paper for my background; I love the fresh feel of this paper, and the white background allows the detail of the diecut pinecones to really shine:

 

A few sparkly gems complete my card. This card took longer to make than it took to write my post; those Christmas Pinecone Dies take a little bit of time to cut and assemble, but I think it was worth it. Plus I've still got enough leftovers to make another 2-3 cards - bonus! I'm also linking today's card up over at the Alphabet Challenge Blog, where they are currently on 'P is for Peace' - the world could definitely do with some of that at the moment, 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. 

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.

Christmas Joy To You PP666

by Joanne James12. November 2023 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 festive colour challenge for us to work with:

    

Red, green and gold is one of my favourite festive colour combinations so I wanted to see what you would all make with it this week. You can add any other colour of your choice; for today's card I added a little Old Olive and using Jen M's square layout over at Freshly Made Sketches made a traditional Christmas card to add to my growing stash - take a look:

 

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

The sketch layout was perfect to showcase a large panel of designer series paper, so I chose a vibrant holly pattern from the Joy of Christmas paper pack. I used the slanted panel to feature my bold sentiment from the 'Joy To You' stamp set, which I stamped in Real Red onto a white panel cut with one of the Scalloped Contour Dies to which I added a holly and pine diecut embellishment:

 

I wrapped my panel of DSP with some gold simple elegant trim (great for saving bulk on cards that need to be mailed at this time of year) and added a bow to my foliage to complete my card. This card actually came together quite quickly once I'd decided on my elements; the paper does much of the hard work with such a busy pattern, it really doesn't need much else. So what will you make with this week's colour combination? Whilst these colours are my festive favourites, you don't have to make a Christmas project with them - the choice is yours!

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 had a super busy day yesterday, with a flying overnight visit for my university-loving daughter and a hockey match for the youngest of the James Juniors. My laundry service has gone into overdrive once more, so today will be spent ironing and baking and hopefully squeezing in a little crafting to finish a few projects that are in bits on my desk. I'm usually one of those people that makes one thing at a time, but since I've had to snatch a quick 30 minutes here and there over the last couple of days, I've started several things and am yet to finish a single one! Hopefully I'll be back tomorrow to share one of them. Until then, happy stampin'!

 

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

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

Hi With Just My Type and Sunshine and Rainbows FF0147

by Joanne James10. November 2023 09:00

Today I have my card for the new challenge over at Festive Friday Card Making and Paper Crafting Challenge

    

The challenge that we are celebrating this week is 'World Hello Day' which is on November 21st. Remember the fun thing is that at Festive Friday you do not need to actually celebrate the occasion; your goal is to simply use three or more items from the inspiration list on your project. This week I used bright colours, patterned paper, envelope and hello/hi sentiment along with the layout over at Sketch Saturday and this is what I came up with:

 

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

Believe it or not I actually started out making this card with the little 'hi' sentiment from the 'Just My Type' stamp set. I decided since it was so tiny, it would either need a very clean and simple layout or a bold and colourful background - as you can see, I went for the latter! I used some retired 'Sunshine and Rainbows' paper in panels for my background, then picked out the colours and images to create a little embellished focal point around my sentiment using other stamps in the set and a few additional diecut pieces from the Give It A Whirl Dies:

Cute, right?! Just the kind of note to brighten someone's day - although they might need sunglasses when they take it out of the envelope, with not a drop of black and white in sight!

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. 

How does our board inspire you? I can’t wait to see what YOU create! For more inspiration, be sure to visit the rest of the Festive Friday Card Making and Paper Crafting Challenge Design team:

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.

Merry Bold And Bright Modern Christmas Trees FMS610

by Joanne James6. November 2023 09:00

Today I'm sharing a card using Jen T's fabulous layout over at Freshly Made Sketches this week:

   

This is a sketch with so many possibilities! I decided to make a contemporary Christmas card using one of the Christmas tree designs in the Merry Bold & Bright designer series paper pack - take a look:

 

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

I'm also playing along with my friends at Just Us Girls again this week who have my favourite festive colour combo, red and green, as their inspiration this week. I would ordinarily go with something much more traditional, maybe Real Red and Shaded Spruce (my all-time favourite festive combo!) however the contemporary Christmas tree design in the Merry Bold and Bright designer series paper pack changes things up and pairs Lemon Lime Twist with Poppy Parade and a little white. My card was actually designed around the sentiment in the first instance, as I wanted something that would build across the three strips of the sketch and I love the way the text on the 'Joy to You' stamps gets bolder as it builds. I used both retired Stitched Stars Dies and Stitched Triangle Dies to create my accent trees; you could punch these but I like the addition of the stitched detail:

 

An unusual colour combination, but I actually rather like it; so much so I made two cards whilst I was at it! Here's a peek at the inside too where I added another of the stamps from the 'Joy To You' set and added a leftover strip of paper to decorate:

 

Perhaps this one needs a warning on the envelope to wear sunglasses on opening!!

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 having a day of catching up with lots of little jobs today - the sun is shining, so I'm feeling motivated! 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.

A Big Thanks PP665

by Joanne James5. November 2023 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 Anne Marie to host this week and she has a great theme challenge for us to work with:

    

Giving thanks - everyone needs a good supply of thank you cards, right? With Thanksgiving later this month for my American friends, November is often a month more than most when we pause to reflect on the things we are grateful for. I could have gone with a card that was similarly seasonally themed, but I decided instead to go with something bold and bright that made the most of this week's Global Design Project sketch - take a look:

 

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

Bold & Bright, Not Merry - For my vertical stripes, I used a panel of the Merry, Bold & Bright Designer series paper. Part of the Christmas product range, this is a paper pack with designs that really do work all year round and these stripes are perfect for my thank you card.

Many, Many Thanks - I decided to add some tone-on-tone stamping using a selection of the stamps in the 'Timeless Arrangements' stamp set. This set is choc-full of sentiments for all kinds of thank yous; I chose three different sentiments and stamped them repeatedly along the length of the stripes. This is a great way to add interest to a card and using the striped designer paper makes it really easy - no need to stress about accurately cutting your stripes to the same size. 

A Very Big Thanks - I heat-embossed another of the sentiments from the set in (retired) Blueberry Bushel embossing powder onto a vellum circle and decided I had to finish my card with  - a very big thanks, what else?! I added a layered a diecut of the retired thanks die from the Amazing Thanks Dies, slightly offset to reveal some blue beneath my bright green sentiment:

 

A trio of sparkly enamel dots complete my card. So what do you think? Who would you send today's colourful thank you to? Do leave me a comment below and let me know - I'd love to hear your thoughts.

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; our house seems super quiet today, with only the youngest of the James juniors and I in residence - the eldest is still enjoying university life and the hubby is on an extended trip to China and Vietnam. I wonder how long it will be before we are bored with each other's company?! 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.

Labels Aglow Clean and Simple Notecard

by Joanne James4. November 2023 19:00

Yay - it's the weekend! Today I'm sharing a clean and simple notecard that was inspired by a few challenges that came together in an interesting way:

         

The colour scheme at AAA Cards caught my eye and the circular balloon image got me thinking of the SUO Challenges theme of circles and I decided to combine the two. The sketch layout over at Just Add Ink gave me the perfect layout to execute my idea (and is considerably less involved than my winning card last week - thank you ladies for the pick!) - take a look:

 

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

I wanted a design that exclusively featured circles and I decided to use the Labels Aglow Dies which are all based around tiny diecut circles. I diecut the large round pattern comprising lots of tiny circles twice from thick white cardstock and before I glued them down, I embossed an imprint of the die onto the card base and used my Stampin' Blends in the AAA Cards challenge colours to randomly colour the dots, similar to the inspiration photo. You can see the detail more closely on the photo below:

 

I finished with a simple sentiment from the 'Ringed With Nature' stamp set which I heat-embossed in white onto a Night of Navy label cut with another of the dies in the set for an extra pop of colour. The Labels Aglow Dies carried over into the annual catalogue from the seasonal catalogue this time last year and are often used for Christmas-themed and seasonal cards, especially as it was bundled with the co-ordinating 'Brightest Glow' stamp set so this is a great way to show how they can be used effectively for a non-festive card too. This is a simple notecard that is great to have on standby for those times when you need to pop a quick note in with something and would work in any colour 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. 

Enjoy your day; following a dry evening and a fantastic fireworks display yesterday evening, I've spent my afternoon sheltering at the side of a wet and windy hockey pitch today - winter has definitely arrived! I'll be back tomorrow with my card 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.

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.