Today I'm sharing my design team card for our new challenge over at As you See It where it's time for my favourite, a sketch challenge courtesy of the lovely LeAnne:

I have been trying to get some use out of sets that are about to retire and decided to pair today's sketch with the wedding theme over at Global Design Project and create a wedding card for the bride - take a look:

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

For The Bride - I bought the 'Wonderful Moments' set the minute it became available in the catalogue; I love the style of the artist - it's the same design as 'Beautiful You', 'Artfully Aware', 'A Good Man' and 'Beautiful Moments' - and in this particular set it was the bride image that sold it to me. That said - this is the very first time I've inked it up!! Clearly 'so many stamp sets, so little time' in my house!! For me though it is a keeper - the set has some great sentiments, and I adore this bridal image. I decide to heat emboss my image in silver which can be a little tricky to photograph, so I've added a couple of extra images so that you can appreciate the detail and shine:

Lovely In Lavender - I paired my silvers with one of my favourite and oft overlooked papers in the Best Dressed DSP stack - I love the subtle white roses on the variegated Purple Posy background and I couldn't resist using it for my background today. I have a friend who actually got married in a wedding dress that was this soft lilac colour and this card reminds me of that day. 

Outside the Frame - I wanted to use an embossed rectangular frame for one of the layers on my card (I used some retired brushed silver cardstock) but rather than frame my image, I fussy cut the bride and positioned her outside the frame for maximum impact. I really like the finished effect:

I did take one or two liberties with LeAnne's sketch, especially with the sentiment placement, which I had to move and place inside my frame (I heat embossed it on vellum and used this as another of my layers) and I downplayed the vertical strip with a piece of metallic edged ribbon, but hopefully you can see the broad layout there. Either way, I LOVE this card and hope you do too! I had no-one in mind to send my card to when I made it and Rebecca popped her head around the door as I was photographing and asked me who it was for. Jokingly, as the bride has her colouring, I said "no-one in particular; maybe I'll keep it for you." She promptly said "Put it somewhere safe then - it will be at least 25 years before I get married!!" What can I say - a typical teenage girl with other things on her mind!

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. 

Before you put your creative thinking caps on, why not check out the blogs of the other As You See It team members:

Amy Jasper

Heather Cooper

Jan Clothier

Jane Knudsen

LeAnne Pugliese

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; we have a Bank Holiday here in the UK today to celebrate the 75th Anniversary of VE (Victory in Europe) day. There was a Red Arrows flypast during one of my online demonstration sessions this morning and one of the ladies on the call was lucky enough to see them fly overhead through her skylight as we crafted. I didn't see or hear them but one of the ladies in my choir snapped this rather good photo:

They fly by so fast it's quite tricky to catch a good photo. I hope you enjoy the rest of your day and I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Wonderful Moments Photopolymer Stamp Set	Heirloom Frames Dies And 3D Embossing Folder	Best Dressed 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 Cm) Designer Series Paper	Silver 3/8" Metallic-Edge Ribbon	Woven Threads Sequin Assortment
Vellum A4 Cardstock	Embossing Buddy	Versamark Pad	Silver Stampin' Emboss Powder	So Saffron Stampin' Blends Combo Pack
Purple Posy Stampin' Blends Combo Pack	Ivory Stampin' Blends Marker	Stampin' Blends Color Lifter

Hi everyone! Wednesday already? Oh my! I've had a busy start to my week with online card classes which are really starting to take off as we get used to the technology. I had my main class on Monday using 'Beautiful Friendship' one of my most favourite sets (cards to follow). In order to stave off boredom for a lot of my regular crafty ladies, I've been following up each class with a couple of shorter 30 minute sessions that use the same set we used in our class but using different techniques. This is more like a Facebook live but we still use Zoom so that we are in a classroom format and can all see and talk to each other as I'm demonstrating. I don't do many Facebook lives and must confess I much prefer the classroom format. If anyone is reading this and thinking they would like to know more about online classes or these little demo sessions, then do check out my Facebook page or leave me a comment below and I can add you to my group.

Anyway - time for a blog post! I've had a few server issues with my hosting company earlier this week, so if you popped by and couldn't reach my blog, please accept my apologies - things should all be sorted now I'm told! So today I'm sharing another couple of cards using the #ShareSunshine product giveback download that Stampin' Up! has released to raise funds for Covid-19 related charities - you can read all about it and purchase the download if you are interested in my previous post here. For the first one I used the current Fusion sketch for my layout (great sketch!):

I used the fun loo roll image and once printed die cut it with a stitched circle, and paired it with some retired Bubbles & Fizz Sale-A-Bration papers - take a look:

I added some striped Bermuda Bay ribbon and another of the print out sentiments to the inside of my card:

That's pretty much all we can do right?!

One of my lovely customers, Jane, shared some fabulous cards using this download over on my Facebook page and I noticed that she had used some of these papers and they actually match quite a lot of the sentiments and images, so I got to use up some paper too. If you would like to see Jane's cards, you can see them here - thanks for the inspiration Jane!

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. 

I also managed a quick second card this afternoon, using this week's CAS(E) This Sketch:

I used another or the retired Bubble and Fizz papers and paired it with the martini glass that I coloured with Blends and this fun sentiment:

It finishes inside the card like this:

Enjoy your evening. I spent my day editing and uploading some online class videos and enabling my oven repair man to do his job whilst social distancing - why do these things always break down at the most inconvenient times?! I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

#ShareSunshine Digital Download: get yours here

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 fun theme challenge for you to work with:

I have been looking at the sentiments in the new #ShareSunshine product giveback download and decided to use one of the funny ones on my card today - take a look:

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

#ShareSunshine - The #ShareSunshine PDF download is the Covid-19 Product Giveback that I shared with you here last week. It includes lots of fun sentiments related to the current social distancing and unique times we find ourselves in that are great for sharing with friends and family to let them know we are thinking of them. I chose to feature the fun 'I've Just Been Working On My Homebody' sentiment and hunted through my stamp sets to find a suitably fit individual ...

We'll Walrus Be Friends - ... and the rotund walrus in 'We'll Walrus Be Friends' was just the thing! I created a repeating background with my stamp. Is it only me that feels like this chap of late? Too much cake and not enough exercise!!

Starburst Punch - The PDF download comes with a list of the ink colours used and co-ordinating products for each of the images and the one I chose fits the Starburst Punch perfectly. I cropped mine first with a 2" circle punch and mounted it onto my Mango Melody starburst; the former is carrying over but the Starburst Punch is retiring so if this is on your wishlist, now is the time to add it 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:

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

I can't wait to see what happy projects you have to share with us in the Paper Players gallery this week!

Enjoy your day; I will be spending time in the garden and trying to make Sunday feel less like any other day of the week since they all seem to roll into one at the moment! I might make up more Covid cards with my download printouts too to send out to friends and family as I have a few ideas. I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

We'll Walrus Be Friends Cling Stamp Set	Starburst Punch	2" (5.1 Cm) Circle Punch	Balmy Blue A4 Cardstock	Mango Melody A4 Cardstock
Whisper White A4 Cardstock	Basic Gray Classic Stampin' Pad	Balmy Blue Light Stampin' Blends Marker	Smoky Slate Light Stampin' Blends Marker

Today I'm sharing a couple of projects from one of last month's classes that featured the Peaceful Moments bundle, part of the Painted Poppies Suite. First up a birthday card:

I used the designer series paper from the Peaceful Poppies Suite beneath a diecut layer and embellished with two layered diecut poppies and a banner sentiment. We also made a co-ordinating hanging ornament using the same diecut poppies and a sentiment stamped directly onto a wooden circle:

We don't often make 3D items in our technique class, so this was a change for us. It was a great way to make use of the dies which we were featuring and it's fair to say the ladies loved it too.

Here's a photo of both items together:

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. 

I've had one of those days when I've been seriously fighting technology today with nothing going right and the internet is clearly not appreciating all of the at-home Jameses running multiple devices at once! I feel exhausted by the whole thing and like I need to step away - so I'm off to finish my online groceries shopping and then am taking the night off!! 

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

Peaceful Moments Bundle (English)	Peaceful Poppies Designer Series Paper	Pool Party A4 Cardstock	Blackberry Bliss A4 Cardstock	Blackberry Bliss Classic Stampin' Pad	Poppy Parade A4 Cardstock
Real Red A4 Cardstock	Old Olive A4 Cardstock	Mossy Meadow A4 Cardstock	Basic Black A4 Cardstock	Whisper White A4 Cardstock	Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad

It's Thursday and time for a new challenge over at TicTacToe! It's the turn of Team X to host this week and the lovely Amy is our featured designer. This is the fun board that we are playing along with: 

I adore the bright colours of the Just Us Girls Challenge photo this week so couldn't resist combining with our board this week for a bright and sunny scene - take a look:

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

Tic Tac Toe Three Ways - I started off with Pink-Flowers-Clouds in the first column as my TTT solution, but by the time I finished realised I had also managed the first row Pink-Diecut-Grass and the diagonal Clouds-Twine-Grass. What can I say? #OverAchiever. Truth is, I was so panicked about not covering three squares, I ended up nearly covering the board!!

A Friendly Silhouette - I used the Friendly Silhouettes dies to create my grassy flower meadow, cutting the whole thing out in Granny Apple Green then again in pink, yellow and red so that I could paper-piece the flowers to the top of the stems as I didn't want a true silhouette on this occasion. I added a few pearls as flower centres. I completed my scene by punching a yellow 1/2" circle, cutting some clouds using a retired die and the two teeny tiny orange butterflies are cut using the Butterfly Beauty Dies - the perfect size for my scene.

A Darling Label Punch - I added a sentiment from the co-ordinating Friend Like You stamp set, but decided to punch it out using the punch in the Darling Label Punch Set box so that it would stand out instead of stamping it straight onto my layer. This kit is retiring so currently a bargain at £16.80 in the online store - link below if you would like to grab one. I also used the Friends Like You stamp set to decorate the inside of my card:

A nice uplifting sentiment for the times we find ourselves in. Sometimes a warm cup of tea, a walk in the sunshine with the ones we love or even a slice of cake delivers just the right amount of pleasure when there is so much going on around us that is not within our control.

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. 

A tictactoe board offers so many creative possibilities - how does this week's board inspire you? Why not have a go? We would love to see you in the gallery and who knows - you might be selected for Designer's Choice and be eligible to be a guest designer on a future challenge. 

Enjoy your day; I will be spending some time crafting and creating more delights to share with you in the coming week. I'll be back tomorrow with another project - a lovely card and gift combo, even if I say so myself - you won't want to miss it! Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

Friend Like You Bundle	Friendly Silhouettes Dies	Friend Like You Photopolymer Stamp Set	Darling Label Punch Box	Brights A4 Cardstock	Blueberry Bushel A4 Cardstock
Blueberry Bushel Classic Stampin' Pad	Whisper White Solid Baker's Twine	Pearl Basic Jewels	Whisper White A4 Cardstock

Happy hump day everyone! Lots to do today so today's card is a quick one using this week's CAS(E) This Sketch:

I went super-simple on this one and more graphic than the loose lines of the sketch to make a simple notecard using the long pattern from the Flourish Dies paired with a simple sentiment from the co-ordinating Flourishing Phrases stamp set:

You know how much I will miss these dies and the Flourishing Phrases stamp set; they have had a good innings though, so I really can't complain too much. Great for simple cards like this though. I used colours from three different colour families but you could just use one colour family pack; this simple design is perfect for using up offcut scraps of card that you have lying around in any colour.

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: 

Flourish Dies

Flourishing Phrases Cling-Mount Stamp Set

Night Of Navy Classic Stampin' Pad

Night Of Navy A4 Cardstock

Melon Mambo A4 Cardstock

Mint Macaron A4 Cardstock

Whisper White A4 Thick Cardstock

Today I'm sharing another quick card that I made for this week's Just Add Ink challenge - you know I can't resist a good sketch:

I decided to make a fun card using the retiring 'Music From My Heart' stamp set - take a look:

Since three out of four members of the James household play piano, and we have a guitarist and singer too, it stands to reason that this set would be one of the first into my shopping basket when the Spring-Summer catalogue launched last December and I am sad that it isn't carrying over as we haven't had anything like it before. I just love this set and it is a keeper for me! 

This card is just some random stamping of the treble clef and the 'forget your trebles' sentiment onto a white cardbase, with a black top panel and then some layering of a stave, a wavy piano keyboard and a stitched square to highlight my piano. I like the heart detail on the treble clef, which allows for some quick pops of rainbow colour. I did the same with the notes on the stave, although this layer did blend into the background more than I would have liked; smaller black notes would have worked better in hindsight. No matter - this card will be perfect for a musical friend; in fact, I might run off a batch to send to my choir ladies to let them know I'm missing 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 evening and I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Music From The Heart Photopolymer Stamp Set	Stitched Shapes Dies	Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad	Basic Black A4 Cardstock	Whisper White A4 Thick Cardstock	Basic Black Combo Pack Stampin' Blends
Real Red Combo Pack Stampin' Blends	Pumpkin Pie Stampin' Blends Markers Combo Pack	Daffodil Delight Stampin' Blends Markers Combo Pack	Granny Apple Green Stampin' Blends Markers Combo Pack	Bermuda Bay Stampin' Blends Markers Combo Pack	Balmy Blue Stampin' Blends Combo Pack
Highland Heather Stampin' Blends Markers Combo Pack

Today I'm sharing my second card using the sketch over at Fusion, this time fully embracing the inspiration photo too:

You can see my previous post here that featured primarily the sketch; I loved that inspiration photo too, which the team chose to commemorate Anzac Day in Australia and New Zealand, which was last week on 25th April. I wanted to create a sympathy card using reds and yellows and the silhouette idea  - this is what I came up with:

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

Poppy Moments - Just as with the previous card I made for this challenge, I used a diecut poppy, this time a couple of them, as the focal point for my card. I just love those Poppy Moments Dies - they make such fabulous bold statements on projects. I stuck with the remembrance theme and this time used a combination of sentiments for my sympathy card, with a simple 'always remember' on the front and then finished the inside like this:

A Background Cheat - I loved the idea of the sun behind the poppies in the inspiration photo and wanted to retain these colours and the silhouette idea on my card. I considered brayering and pigment sprinkles, but as you know I have something of a love-hate relationship with these (mostly the latter!) but then it dawned on me - a cheat! I could create an easy artsy background with the Sprinkles effect by using some of the See A Silhouette designer series paper - so much more me! And I love the finished effect - and no mess either, win-win! 

Poppy Silhouettes - I don't have a soldier image, but decided with my bold red accent poppies and my colourful background, I could use one of my Painted Poppies stamps to create some silhouetted poppies. I simply stamped them directly onto my DSP and coloured the poppy petals in with my dark Basic Black Stampin' Blends marker. They look a little grey in the photo, but do look a little darker in real life.  

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. 

I really like the way this card came together and it seems quite fitting to share it today, given that here in the UK we are observing a  minute silence at 11am in remembrance of the keyworker staff who have lost their lives during the Corona Virus pandemic. So for the doctors, nurses, bus drivers and many more - this is for you. #minutesilence

As forecast, it's wet with a constant drizzle here today, so indoor jobs it is! I am finishing up some class prep today for next week's online 'Beautiful Friendship' class (full details here if you would like to join) getting on with some cleaning and ironing, trying to not disturb the Juniors as they plough diligently on with distance learning. Enjoy your day and I'll be back later with another card for you. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Peaceful Moments Bundle (English)	Painted Poppies Cling Stamp Set	Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad	See A Silhouette Designer Series Paper	Basic Black A4 Cardstock	Real Red A4 Cardstock
Poppy Parade A4 Cardstock	Basic Black Dark Stampin' Blends	Embossing Buddy	Versamark Pad	White Stampin' Emboss Powder

I have another quick post for you today with some extra cards that I managed to make in the last couple of days for a few challenges: the first is using a retired set that is perfect for the current challenge over at Retro Rubber where 'anything goes' this week, that uses the Freshly Made Sketches layout and uses red/blue/superheroes and appreciation sentiment from the Inspo List over at Festive Friday: 

I wanted a couple of quick cards to send to some nursing friends who are currently working really hard during the Corona virus pandemic in hospitals to let them know what an awesome job they are doing so inspired too by the lovely Jen Timko's take on her own FMS sketch this week I dug out my retired 'Everyday Hero' stamp set from 2017 which had just the sentiment I needed:

I went really clean and simple and stamped the cape onto a stitched oval and coloured it with my Blends before adding a star punched out of gold glimmer paper because, well, even a super hero needs some bling, right? And here's a picture showing both the outside of the card and how the sentiment resolves on the inside:

This card was actually quite a quick make so I am going to run a few more of these off - there are so many everyday heroes at the moment keeping the country both safe and moving, from doctors and nurses to supermarket staff and refuse collectors, that I thought it would be nice to have a pile on hand to give out whenever I came across one of mine.  

Here is the visual summary of the key products used on today's project for you to pin for easy reference - the stamp set is retired but the other basic items are available:

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:

Stitched Shapes Dies

Whisper White A4 Cardstock

Pacific Point A4 Cardstock

Pacific Point Classic Stampin' Pad

Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad

Real Red Combo Pack Stampin' Blends

Gold Glimmer Paper

Another Monday, another week! I have two cards for you today, both using Jen's fabulous layout at Freshly Made Sketches. This first one also uses the colour palette over at Color Throwdown:

I loved Jen's sketch and decided to create a split panel, with the navy panels raised on yellow, and a wreath made using the Sweetly Swirled stamp set that has been sat on my shelf uninked for months and is now about to retire (don't you just hate it when that happens?!):

I stamped my wreath and some greenery directly onto a stitched circle, then fussy cut some additional stamped flowers and leaves and simply layered them on top. I heat embossed my sentiment in white onto my navy panel, which I split and popped up on a Daffodil Delight card base. 

This card is just my kind of card and whilst this is the first time this stamp set has seen ink, it is one I will be keeping in my collection, not least because I love the swirly font of the sentiments 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; it is looking considerable more grey here today in the UK and the weather outlook for the next 10 days is rain, rain and more rain. It hasn't started here yet so since the children are getting on with their distance learning, I'm spending the day outside to get on with my outside jobs whilst I still can; my blog posts are all prepped for the week so I can leave the crafting until it starts to rain! I'll be back shortly with another card that I made using Jen's sketch for some very special people. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Sweetly Swirled Photopolymer Stamp Set	Night Of Navy A4 Cardstock	Night Of Navy Classic Stampin' Pad	Daffodil Delight A4 Cardstock	Daffodil Delight Classic Stampin' Pad	Call Me Clover Stampin' Pad
Crumb Cake Classic Stampin' Pad	Whisper White A4 Cardstock	Stitched Shapes Dies	Embossing Buddy	Versamark Pad	White Stampin' Emboss Powder