As anticipated, I didn't manage a blog post yesterday. After a full day on my feet, when I finally sat down yesterday evening I was absolutely good for nothing! Today has been a busy one too: swimming lessons and Rebecca's birthday pool party this afternoon. All good fun, if challenging as far as the weather is concerned - showers are most definitely the order of the day this weekend!

Anyway, on to today's project - I've another couple of cards to share with you, this time using the single daisy flower stamp. This is the new stamp in the set - and I love that it fits the 1 1/4" scallop circle punch. This is the first card I came up with:

A bright and cheery card - I love yellow! - with a shaped edge created by a row of punched daisies in shades of yellow with some colour blending on the petals. The centres were stamped separately and punched out with the circle from the Itty Bitty Punches pack. I also made another one with additional layering in a pink colourway:

I left this one sentiment-free as I sometimes do - I can always add the most appropriate sentiment at a later date. One last thing today before I go - as it was Rebecca's pool party today, I just thought I would share with you a picture of her amazing birthday cake:

I absolutely cannot take the credit for this work of art - it was made by Sharon, one of the ladies that attends my card classes. Isn't it just fabulous? Right down to the little flip flops. Perfect for my water baby, that's for sure.

I'll be back with something different to share tomorrow - until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up Supplies:

Stamps: Best of Flowers, Sassy Salutations

Cardstock: Whisper White, So Saffron, Pretty in Pink

Ink/Stampin' Write Markers: So Saffron, Daffodil Delight, Early Espresso, Pretty in Pink, Melon Mambo, Regal Rose

Tools: 1 1/4" Scallop Circle Punch, 3/16" Corner Punch, Itty Bitty Shapes Punch (circle)

I've had a very busy day baking today and making last minute preparations for a school summer fete tomorrow, so am rewarding myself with a trip to the cinema later to see 'Man of Steel' (well, Henry as a superhero - what could be better?!) As a result, an early blog post from me - well, it's either early or not at all, so I'm giving the illusion of being more organised at least!

Today I'm sharing a couple of cards I made with another of the sets from this month's 25th anniversary 'Best of Flowers' stamp set. I shared a couple here previously using the miniature daisy stamp; this time it's the turn of the hydrangea. I made a couple of cards, one in pink and one in blue, and whilst the stamp is a new version of an old favourite, the colours I chose are really the 'something old' I'm referring to here; here's the first card I made:

I chose a simple design and having inked my stamp with markers, I then used a blender pen to achieve a graduated colour on the blossom and leaves. I inset the flower in a square that I masked off and sponged around the edges for definition, in the same colour. Here's a close-up of the flower itself: 

I then decided to add an Itty Bitty 'Happy Birthday' banner by way of sentiment, and cut this out and popped it up on a couple of dimensionals so that I was not completely a one layer card. Here's the blue version in the same design:

Very simple - like me! - and monochromatic. Did you guess the colours? Yes, it's Regal Rose and Bashful Blue, both colours that are leaving us at the end of this month to make way for some new additions to our colour families. They both reminded me of hydrangea colours though and seemed to justify one last use.

So that's all for today; I won't promise a post tomorrow, as our school fete has a reputation for going on long into the night with clearing up and counting of money. If I'm home at a reasonable hour, I'll be sure to share another card and the day's events with you; if not, I'll see you Sunday. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up Supplies:

Stamps: Best of Flowers, Itty Bitty Banners

Cardstock: Whisper White

Ink/Stampin' Write Markers: Regal Rose, Bashful Blue, Old Olive

Tools: Itty Bitty Banners Framelits, Sponge

Today I'm sharing another of the cards from last week's Secret Garden One Sheet Wonder class with you. This card also uses single stamped images of three of the flowers in the set which are then cut out using the co-ordinating framelits and layered onto a smaller piece of patterned cardstock as a background:

This card has more detailed to it with lots of layering and looks very crisp on a white background. We had a lot of fun creating our cards using the One Sheet Wonder and the nice thing is that even though we all followed the same basic layout, everyone's cards looked different.

I really enjoyed the One Sheet Wonder - look at how many cards you can make with just one sheet of patterned stamped paper:

Come back tomorrow to see another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up Supplies:

Stamps: Secret Garden, Sassy Salutations

Cardstock: Whisper White, Pink Pirouette, Old Olive

Ink/Stampin' Write Markers:  Raspberry Ripple, Pink Pirouette, Old Olive

Tools: Secret Garden Framelits

Finishing Touches: Basics Pearls

Today I'm going to share a couple of the cards that I made with the ladies in my card classes last week. This month we decided to make a One Sheet Wonder using the Secret Garden stamp set and co-ordinating framelits. For those of you reading this who've never tried it, a One Sheet Wonder is where you create your own sheet of patterned paper using a variety of stamps and colours, then cut this into sections and use these as the basis to decorate your cards. You can cut your patterned sheet into lots of different shapes and sizes and depending on the dimensions you choose, you can make between 2 and 10 cards. I used a template based on a layout by LeAnn Greff, although modified slightly to suit my purposes. Our template made 10 cards in total. Here are the 4 cards we made in class:

And here's a close up of one of the cards in our set:

This is quite a simple card and quick to pull together - by carefully choosing the colours and adding some luxurious ribbon it turns it from something ordinary into something classic.

Come back tomorrow to see the other cards in the set. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up Supplies:

Stamps: Secret Garden, Sassy Salutations

Cardstock: Whisper White, Raspberry Ripple, Pink Pirouette, Old Olive

Ink/Stampin' Write Markers:  Raspberry Ripple, Pink Pirouette, Old Olive

Tools: Secret Garden Framelits, Scallop Edge Border Punch

Finishing Touches: Raspberry Ripple 3/8" Stitched Satin Ribbon

Today I'm back with the birthday card I promised yesterday: this time the card I made from her little brother. I saw a great card by Wendy Cranford on Pinterest a while ago and whilst this was for a LaLa Loopsy doll, I thought I could make a great likeness of Rebecca from it. Here's the link to Wendy's original card where she also provides a great video tutorial with step-by-step instructions on how she created her version. Now for my card:

I made my hair blonde and cut in a fringe - don't you just love the hair tied in bunches?! Also, instead of buttons for eyes, I used some punched navy circles and painted with Crystal Effects to make them shiny. Another sentiment courtesy of 'For My Family', this time pairing 'sister' with the 'Happy Birthday' from Wacky Wishes. Another set I'll be sorry to see go; if you would like to own this set, you need to host a party before the end of the month so get in touch!

Here's a close up of the little girl's face again:

I know, totally impractical for putting in an envelope, but I love the hair! So simple to recreate - just cut the card using paper snips into thin strands, then curl around a pencil - but so effective. The perfect card for little girls and I love that you can make them individual to look like the recipient. To be fair, this photo looks more like 'baby Rebecca' than my now 8 year-old - this is the photo that inspired my version of this card:

I guess in my mind's eye she will always look this way to me - beautiful!

Back tomorrow with another project - until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up Supplies:

Stamps: For My Family, Wacky Wishes

Cardstock: Whisper White, Real Red, Daffodil Delight, Rich Razzleberry, Night of Navy, Blushing Bride, Summer Smooches Parade Designer Series Paper

Ink/Stampin' Write Markers: Real Red, Melon Mambo, Whisper White Kraft Ink

Tools: Circles #2 Originals Die, Small Heart Punch, Corner Punch, Dress Up Framelits, Itty Bitty Punches (circle), Small Oval Punch, Stamp-a-ma-jig

Finishing Touches: Basics Rhinestones

So something different today - birthday invitations! I was going to share a birthday card with you today but changed my mind (bloggers prerogative!) As already mentioned this week, it was Rebecca's 8th birthday last Saturday. She is having a swimming pool party next Sunday to celebrate with her friends and so water-themed invitations were the order of the day. She decided that 'Oh, Whale' was to be the stamp set of choice for the task, I saw this lovely Valentine card here and loved the layout, so decided to use this as the basis for my party invitation design. Here are the finished invitations:

I switched out the hearts, went for a darker blue whale and couldn't miss the opportunity to use my Cloudy Day Embossing Folder to add texture to the circle behind the whale. I really like the mix of circle styles on this card and the way the DSP, punched circle and paper piercing bring the whole design together. I then used the 'Make a Wish' set to make light work of the details on the inside of the card (no photo of this though - oops!)

Back tomorrow with another project; until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up Supplies:

Stamps: Oh Whale, Make a Wish

Cardstock: Whisper White, Real Red, Polka Dot Parade Designer Series Paper (Marina Mist)

Ink/Stampin' Write Markers: Night of Navy, Marina Mist, Real Red

Tools: Circles #2 Originals Die, Cloudy Day Textured Embossing Folder, Small Heart Punch, Essentials Paper Piercing Pack, Stamp-a-ma-jig

Today is Father's Day and I can finally share the Father's Day card that I made for the James Juniors to give to Daddy on Father's Day. This has been something of a closely guarded secret in our house, but we managed to get to the official envelope-opening before he saw it, so that's pretty good going! I tried something new for this card and broke into my This and That Washi Tape for the first time - take a look:

It is so easy to tape and reposition this tape and it's great for card detail, as well as to hold photos and keepsakes into your journal. Wondering where I got the sentiment from? The 'To My Dad' is from the soon-to-be retired 'For My Family' set (can't believe this set is going - it is SO useful for card personalisation!) but the 'You are the best' is a combination of words taken from a couple of the 'Feel Goods' stamps - with careful use of my trusty stamp-a-ma-jig and some selective colouring with my Basic Grey marker pen, I created my very own sentiment that summed up exactly what I wanted to say. Some stars, linen thread and designer button, along with a co-ordinating envelope, finished off the card worthy of the best Dad - in our eyes, anyway! And as if to prove the point, it has to be said his day was very similar to most Sundays and with the exception of a card and gift, he wasn't treated any differently to any other day - but in his own words, every day is his day so he was fine with that. I can't promise the same will be said next time Mother's Day comes round, but there we go!

So Happy Father's Day - to my husband and Daddy to my children, to my own Dad and everyone else who shares this day.

Back tomorrow with another birthday project - until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up Supplies:

Stamps: For My Family, Feel Goods

Cardstock: Crumb Cake, Very Vanilla, Calypso Coral, basic Grey, This and That Designer Series Paper

Ink/Stampin' Write Markers: Basic Grey

Tools: Stamp-a-ma-jig, Merry Minis Punch (star)

Finishing Touches: Basics Designer Buttons, Linen Thread, This and That Washi Tape, 1/8" Mini Brads

Today's the day - my beautiful princess turns eight years old. Where did the last year, or eight even, disappear? I can't believe how quick she's growing and changing into a (very!) young lady, but a young lady none the less. She may be another year older, but she is still my water baby and as always, there is a strong aquatic theme to our celebrations: a swimming pool birthday cake, pool party next week and in keeping with this, an 'Oh, Whale' birthday card with a difference:

I liked a similar card using this stamp set that Mary Fish had done using a Paper Pals sketch layout a while ago (you can see her card here) and knew that this layout would enable me to make the most of the patterned papers in the Sunshine and Sprinkles set, but I wanted a special sentiment for my card and this proved to be a challenge! There is a photo in the Spring-Summer Seasonal catalogue that shows a play on the word 'celebrate', where the '-ate' is replaced with a number 8 and I really liked this and wanted to incorporate something similar in my card. So armed with a couple of stamp sets, my Typeset Alphabet and my trusty stamp-a-ma-jig, I came up with 'Let's Whale-A-Br8'. Here's a close up of the detail on the flags:

Pretty cute, even if I say so myself! We really did have a great day; here's hoping the next 12 months don't fly by quite so quickly.

I'll be back tomorrow with my husband's Father's Day card, but will have some other birthday-related cards and invitations to share early next week. Until tomorrow, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up Supplies:

Stamps: Oh Whale, Make a Wish

Cardstock: Whisper White, Melon Mambo, Marina Mist, Daffodil Delight, Pacific Point, Sunshine and Sprinkles Designer Series Paper

Ink/Stampin' Write Markers: Pacific Point

Tools: Oh Whale Clearlits, 1/16" Handheld Circle Punch, Scallop Edge Border Punch, Stamp-a-ma-jig, Itty Bitty Punches (flower)

Finishing Touches: Basics Pearls

So today I can share the card I've made for my own Dad in readiness for Father's Day on Sunday. I've had the card made for over a week, but I couldn't be sure he wouldn't check out my blog as he does every once in a while and see it, so I've had to wait until I knew there was no chance of this happening. As he's at my house with my Mum visiting for the weekend, ready to celebrate Rebecca's birthday tomorrow, I know he won't be on the internet so there will be no chance he will see it before he receives it in person. Here is the finished card:

The layout is very similar to the Mother's Day card I made for my Mother-in-law which you can see here. For my Father's Day card, I used Island Indigo and the retiring Baja Breeze (these blues go so well together) and used some First Edition Designer Series Paper to highlight my typeset raised letters of the word 'Dad'. I also scored some border lines to each side of the panel for added definition. I offset this panel so that I could add some co-ordinating baker's twine and one of the large brushed nickel Basics Designer Buttons to finish off the card. I then created a Very Vanilla insert panel that I stamped with the 'Happy Father's Day' stamp from the Delightful Dozen stamp set.

I really like this card and have also made a version in red for a commission - a clean and classic style. I do have one last Father's Day card to share with you: the one I've made for my own husband from the James juniors, but for obvious reasons I won't be sharing this one until Sunday, although if we manage another two days without him seeing it or my youngest giving the game away it will be nothing short of a miracle!

Back tomorrow with a special birthday card to share. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up Supplies:

Stamps: Delightful Dozen (inside card)

Cardstock: Island Indigo, Baja Breeze, Very Vanilla, First Edition DSP

Ink/Stampin' Write Markers: Island Indigo

Tools: Typeset Alphabet Die, Simply Scored

Finishing Touches:  Island Indigo Baker's Twine, Basics Designer Buttons

Last night's card class was fun as always but too late for a blog post and today has been another busy day making birthday cards for the young lady of the house and some Father's Day cards, ahead of the big birthday weekend. I'll share these in the next few days, but meanwhile tonight I thought I'd share the last of the Golden Anniversary cards I made recently. This one is quite different to the previous two; instead of leading with a 50th Anniversary sentiment, I used one of the stamps from the retiring Word Play set as the focus:

I've never used this stamp before, as it never seemed right for anything I was designing. I have toyed with using it as a feature stamp on a scrapbook page (a project for another time though!) then as I was thinking about what it would be like to celebrate 50 years of marriage myself (believe me, that is a LONG way off!) and it struck me how appropriate this stamp would be for a milestone anniversary card - 50 years is a lot of memories!

I decided to use white and brushed gold cardstock again and leave the layout quite simple, with Oval and Label Framelits making light work of the layered front. You can see the lovely gold embossing in this photo too - it adds a real shine. I finished the front with a fussy organza double bow then stamped the inside with my congratulatory anniversary message:

So that's all my Golden Anniversary cards for the time being - which one do you prefer? The other big news of the day is that registration for this year's Stampin' Up! European Convention opened today. Better still, this year convention is being held in Manchester in the UK. I've signed up already; if you would like to enjoy two days of stampin' fun from 22nd-23rd November, contact me for a chat about this and the other benefits being a Stampin' Up! demonstrator can offer.

Back tomorrow with another project - until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up Supplies:

Stamps: Word Play, Memorable Moments

Cardstock: Whisper White, Brushed Gold

Ink/Stampin' Write Markers: Versamark

Tools: Ovals Framelits, Labels Framelits, Stamp-a-ma-jig

Finishing Touches:  Gold Embossing Powder, Whisper White 5/8" Organza Ribbon