It's Monday and the start of a new week! Today was class day for me so I'm a little later with my blog post. Today's card is totally inspired by the inspiration photo over at Just Us Girls this week and also uses the Paper Craft Crew sketch:

I couldn't resist those green wellies and spring flowers! So I combined with some clouds and sunny yellow cardstock to create a cheery card using the retiring stamp set 'Under My Umbrella' that will be leaving us next week - take a look:

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

I went with a rather abstract interpretation using some of the elements in the photo, paper-piecing some dotty green wellies onto a stitched circle and filling them with some fussy cut, colourful spring blooms. I sponged some clouds onto my Whisper White card base using my trusty Happy Dies cloud stencil and some Balmy Blue ink and a blending brush, then added a layer of Daffodil Delight, which I bordered using one of the Curvy Dies (also retiring in June) and stamped my sentiment directly onto this layer, next to my popped-up circle - 'Hello Sunshine' seemed like the most appropriate sentiment from this set for today's card! Are those wellies not just so much fun? Who wouldn'y love to go romping in the great outdoors in those?!

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 seem to be having a run of clouds on my cards, having featured them on Saturday's card and they pop up on tomorrow's card too - as does the 'Under My Umbrella stamp set!

Do come back tomorrow to see what I created. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

UNDER MY UMBRELLA PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£15.00)	CURVY DIES (£27.00)	BLENDING BRUSHES (£11.25)	DAFFODIL DELIGHT A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	BALMY BLUE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)
BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£7.75)	TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (£5.50)

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 sketch challenge for us to work with:

I embraced the layers of Claire's sketch this week and decided to play with some more new goodies from the forthcoming 2021 Annual Catalogue to bring you another 'sneak peek' - this time featuring the Pansy Petals Suite - take a look:

This is what I affectionately like to call a 'kitchen sink' card - because it uses pretty much everything but the kitchen sink! It features three new in-colours: Soft Succulent, Evening Evergreen and Polished Pink, along with the Pansy Patch stamp set and co-ordinating Pansy Dies, two different patterns of Pansy Petals designer series paper, some Polished Pink open weave ribbon and even a little gold Bumblebee trinket:

I wanted to get to grips with the layering of the pansy dies so this card was a great way to do that. I did go to town with my new goodies this week - I just couldn't help myself!! I'm linking today's card up with the team over at SUO Challenges where the theme is designer series paper; I really should have used it as an opportunity to use up some of my retiring paper, but when I came to make my card the pansies won out! Are you excited for the arrival of the new annual catalogue? Just over a week to go until it's here - copies will be going out in the post to everyone who has shopped with me in the last 6 months this week. If you would like a copy and you aren't on my mailing list, please get in touch. Meanwhile, I will have more goodbyes to retiring products to share this week!

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. 

Enjoy your day; I'll be spending mine in the garden enjoying the lovely weather that we've been lucky enough to experience here in the UK this week. I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

I've had a productive day of crafting today so have a quick card to share with you that uses the current sketch over at Freshly Made Sketches:

I was intrigued by Karren's sketch and loved the idea of another slimline card, so perused my retiring stamp sets for something suitable and decided upon the row of birds from the 'Free As A Bird' set - take a look:

I turned the card through 90 degrees so that I could work across the width and sponged clouds using my blending brush and trusty cloud mask made from my Happy Dies for the longer element, overlapping with the row of birds, coloured with my Blends:

I decided to leave my card as a one layer card as I liked the simplicity of it. My dear friend Vicky is the hostess this week over at Addicted to CAS and has chosen the code word 'sky' for the new challenge there, so I'm linking my fluffy blended clouds there 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 evening and I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

FREE AS A BIRD CLING STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£20.00)	TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (£5.50)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£7.75)	BLENDING BRUSHES (£11.25)	POOL PARTY CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)
CRUMB CAKE STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (£8.50)	OLD OLIVE STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (£8.50)	SOFT SUEDE STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (£8.50)	SO SAFFRON STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (£8.50)

Today I'm sharing a card for a couple of challenges:

Whilst I loved Laurel's floral bouquets in the Inspired By photo this week, it was the theme of World Laughter Day over at Festive Friday that really got me going - and my idea was just perfect for the Inspired By sketch so I still got to play there too! Today's card is all about punch art - take a look:

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

So today's card uses a ton of retired products I'm afraid: 2 1/2", 1", 3/4" and 1/2" Circle Punches, Classic Label Punch, along with the retired stamp sets '@SoSocial' and '#Hello', but when you need to create an emoji, punches are the absolute go-to and just because they've retired, these craft-room staples will never leave my collection! I decided to go with 'emoji, yellow, red, lips' from the Festive Friday inspo list and to recreate a 'party emoji' for a birthday card for a certain James Junior from his big sister - his birthday is not until August, but there's nothing like being prepared!! A quick Google gave me a layout and colour scheme to work from and so I set to work. In addition to my trusty circle punches, I've discovered the new Ice Cream Cone Builder Punch is also super useful for this type of card; I used the cone section for my emoji's party hat and the ice-cream scoop formed the basis of my lips (I punched a scoop then fashioned the lips from two of the three small 'bubble' shapes along the bottom edge):

A sprinkling of retired enamel candy dots for confetti (I wanted to go with sequins but didn't have the requisite bright colours) and my on-trend sentiments complete my card. What do you think? Would you recognise my punch art party emoji? Thanks to the Festive Friday team for a great source of inspiration this week - I'm not sure I would even have attempted this card without this challenge, yet I really quite like it and am sure it will tick the box with my social media-savvy son - who knows, he might even put it on Instagram for me!

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. 

Whilst I am fairly knowledgeable as far as basic emojis are concerned, I had my children in stitches recently as I was musing over the dinner table at why the local NHS Sexual Health Clinic advertising that I'd passed earlier that day used an aubergine - of all the vegetables that could be used, I didn't think this was the one that would have broadest appeal to the youth of today, and besides I was struggling to see the link to healthy eating. Once my children had stopped laughing, they pointed out that the aubergine had nothing to do with healthy eating and was really depicting another meaning that is often associated with that emoji; apparently the same applies to cherries, tomatoes and more! I am now fully clued-up and if you are wondering what I'm talking about too, a quick Google search of 'aubergine emoji' will fill you in! Meal times are never dull in the James household, that's for sure!

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

ICE CREAM CONE BUILDER PUNCH (£17.00)	BRIGHTS 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£10.75)	DAFFODIL DELIGHT A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	PACIFIC POINT A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£9.00)
PACIFIC POINT CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£7.75)	BASIC BLACK A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	REAL RED A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	MAGENTA MADNESS A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)

It's Tuesday and time for a new challenge over at CAS Colours & Sketches. Wei is hosting this month and today we have a colour challenge: 

For my card today I took my inspiration from the vase of flowers on the table in the inspiration over at Time Out:

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

A super simple punched flower in a vase, courtesy of the retiring Vase Builder Punch, is the focal point for my card today. I popped the flower head and vase on dimensionals for a little extra lift: 

I paired my vase with a sentiment from the also retiring 'Butterfly Gala' stamp set and centred on a Stitched So Sweetly scalloped stitched rectangle with a Balmy Blue card base is all there is to it! I'm also entering my card over at Addicted to CAS where their code word this week is 'flower'. 

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! color 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; I have joined the ranks of the vaccinated population, having received my first jab this morning - one down, one more to go! I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

VASES BUILDER PUNCH (£13.60)	STITCHED SO SWEETLY DIES (£30.00)	BUTTERFLY GALA PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£12.00)	BALMY BLUE A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	COASTAL CABANA A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)
MAGENTA MADNESS A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	MAGENTA MADNESS CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)	BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£9.00)

Today it's Sunday and time for this week's new challenge over at The Paper Players! It's the turn of the fabulous Laurie to host this week and she has a fun clean and simple challenge for us to work with:

I finally received my first pre-order from the new annual catalogue on Friday so couldn't wait to have a play! I decided to take the current Fusion sketch layout and this week's colours over at Just Us Girls to test drive one of my new stamp sets - take a look:

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

Party Puffins - Today's card features a trio of Party Puffins from the new stamp set of the same name. This is such a cute new set; for my card today I stamped and fussy cut two puffins and a birthday cake for the front of my card and popped them up on dimensionals. The third puffin? He was hiding out on the inside of my card:

Black and White ... - This week's theme is 'clean and simple', so a focus on white space, limited layers and little/no embellishments. With this in mind the Fusion sketch was perfect for constraining my design to no more than half of my card front. I used a strip of black-on-white geometric patterned paper from the True Love DSP pack to ground my design and tie in with the black and white of my puffins:

... And A Trio of Colour - I grounded each of my stamped elements on a stitched square in one of the JUGS challenge colours and used the same trio of Blends combos to add colour to my cake and the legs, beaks and party hat of my puffins:

Are these cheeky little chappies not the cutest?! I just love them! Not to long to go until they go on general sale; the new 2021-22 Stampin' Up! annual catalogue will be live on 4th May. I will be packaging mine this week to send out to those customers who have purchased from me in the last 6 months; if you are reading this and you're not on my mailing list and don't already have a Stampin' Up! demonstrator and would like a copy of the new catalogue, then do get in touch with your contact details and I will arrange to get one out to you 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 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. 

The weather has been much brighter here in the UK the last couple of days so I am hoping to get out on my bike today with the rest of the James family. No other fixed plans; whatever you are doing, I hope you are enjoying some nice weather and fresh air too! I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

TRUE LOVE 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£10.75)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£7.75)	CALYPSO CORAL A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	CALYPSO CORAL STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (£8.50)	DAFFODIL DELIGHT A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)
DAFFODIL DELIGHT STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (£8.50)	FLIRTY FLAMINGO A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	FLIRTY FLAMNGO STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (£8.50)	TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (£5.50)

Today I'm sharing a card using this week's sketch over at The Spot that was inspired by the gorgeous inspiration photo over at The Card Concept this week:

I thought the sketch layout would be perfect for a slimline card and whilst I don't have any lavender stamps in my collection currently, I was totally inspired by the purple tones for my hydrangea - take a look:

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

The lavender purple tones were perfect for a hydrangea - I actually stamped my stem but diecut the flower head from a piece of the Hydrangea Hill DSP, adding a few extra pieces that I centred with some Gorgeous Grape coloured rhinestones for a little extra sparkle:

I mounted my hydrangea on a white panel diecut with one of the Ornate Layers Dies and used another piece of Hydrangea Hill DSP for the background that incorporated some blue tones, picking up on the blues from the gingham bow of the inspiration photo. I heat-embossed my sentiment onto a Misty Moonlight stitched banner and added a blue twine bow as per the sketch, with a piece of galvanised metal cardstock that I ran through a corrugated embossing folder beneath it - a nod to the lavender vase in the photo. I also added an outline hydrangea from the Suite Sampler hostess set to the inside of my card to finish:

And that, in summary, is how I created today's clean and layered 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 and I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

HYDRANGEA HAVEN BUNDLE (ENGLISH) (£48.50)	HYDRANGEA HILL 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£10.75)	ORNATE LAYERS DIES (£34.00)	TASTEFUL LABELS DIES (£29.00)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£7.75)
MISTY MOONLIGHT A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	GORGEOUS GRAPE A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	MOSSY MEADOW CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)	FLOWERS FOR EVERY SEASON RIBBON COMBO PACK (£9.25)

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:

So many ways I could have gone with this one! I loved the row of brightly coloured tulips across the bottom of the current inspiration photo over at HandStampedSentiments and the bright green backgrounds on the two pictures above so I thought I would create another card full of spring blooms with this week's sketch - take a look:

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

Artistry Blooms - I saw this background on a card by Tami Hewlett recently (you can see Tami's card here) and I loved the effect so was keen to re-create it. I've played around with reverse ombre before, using the Sale-A-Bration Oh So Ombre papers but as today's card shows, the Artistry Blooms paper in the annual catalogue also has some great ombre patterns that you can have some fun with too. I've featured some of the other colour combinations from this pack previously, but this yellow through green piece is the perfect backdrop for some spring flowers I think. 

Timeless Tulips - I chose to feature brightly coloured spring tulips on my card; I simply stamped and punched a whole bunch of them, along with leaves, and built them up behind the cross panel, where I chose to feature my sentiment:

 I had a couple of leaves and tulips left over so I added those the the inside of my card too:

Magnolia Memory Border - Aside from adding a sprinkling of dew-like faceted gems and some gold sparklies too, the final detail on my card is the Magnolia Memory border die that I used along the base of my inner rectangle for added interest and detail.

I know this card has an Easter sentiment and this occasion has already passed this year, but it was the perfect fit for my rectangle and I figure it's one off my list for next year - you can never be too organised!

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

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

Here's a summary of our challenge rules:

• Create any card, scrapbooking page, 3D project or packaging project that fits the challenge.
• Please include the challenge graphic and link back to the challenge in your blog post. Turn off word verification so we can leave you lots of lovely comments. Make sure you link the post not the whole blog to the Linky. Use #AYSIXXX when uploading to a public gallery.
• If you’re unsure about ‘the rules’, check the details under the Challenge Guidelines tab on the As You See It Challenge homepage.
• In a sketch challenge, you are welcome to rotate or flip a sketch. You can replace shapes used such as substituting a circle panel for a square panel. However, we must be able to still see the basis of the original sketch in your finished product.

I am busy with laundry and household chores today. With one of the James Juniors back to school following the recent break, I have only one at home. Unfortunately today he is definitely behaving like 'Kevin the Teenager' from that infamous Harry Enfield sketch: as I move from room to room, he grunts then slopes off in search of peace elsewhere - he is clearly not in helpful mood today! So back to it - enjoy your day and I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

TIMELESS TULIPS PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£17.00)	TULIP BUILDER PUNCH (£17.00)	MAGNOLIA MEMORY DIES (£29.70)	RECTANGLE STITCHED DIES (£33.00)	GRANNY APPLE GREEN A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)
GRANNY APPLE GREEN CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)	DAFFODIL DELIGHT A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	GARDEN GREEN CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)	MELON MAMBO CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)	GORGEOUS GRAPE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)
BUMBLEBEE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)	PUMPKIN PIE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)	POPPY PARADE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)	BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£9.00)	ELEGANT FACETED GEMS (£7.00)
GILDED GEMS (£6.50)

It's Tuesday and time for a new challenge over at CAS Colours & Sketches. This week's challenge is a sketch challenge and Wei has asked that we create something with the following layout:

 Feel free to flip or rotate the sketch when making your card. For my card today I wanted to showcase one of my most favourite retiring circles of all time, one of the circles from the Stitched Shapes Dies (unfortunately already out of stock and discontinued by the time you read this):

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

I chose to feature Magenta Madness as the colour with my black and white colour combo today for the current challenge over at Color Dare, but this card would work paired with any colour. I cut a partial circle from the front of my card and infilled it with a piece of window sheet, and added a stitched circle to the acetate panel. I added a sheet of In-Colour DSP with a circle pattern to the inside of my card so that a small portion of it could be seen through my cardfront. Whilst the outside of my card has plenty of white space, inside there's not so much! Wondering what I did with the piece of cardstock I removed to accommodate my window sheet? I flipped it and adhered it to the inside of my card to write my greeting:

 Waste not, want not and all that! I added a stacked birthday diecut from the retiring Well Written dies along with a stamped greeting from 'A Wish For Everything' to complete the front of my card:

Super simple but I really like it! What do you think? Do leave me a comment below - I would 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 '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:

WELL WRITTEN DIES (EN) (£37.00)	2020–2022 IN COLOR 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£10.75)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£7.75)	BASIC BLACK A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	LAYERING CIRCLES DIES (£33.00)
WINDOW SHEETS (£4.75)	MAGENTA MADNESS CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)	A WISH FOR EVERYTHING CLING STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£36.00)

What is Paper Pumpkin? For those of you unfamiliar with the concept, Paper Pumpkin is a monthly subscription service that offers a unique variety of paper projects for crafters of any skill level to enjoy! These all-inclusive craft kits encourage Stampin’ Up! customers to explore their creativity, try new techniques, and discover their potential in paper-crafting. For now, Paper Pumpkin is only available as a subscription in North America. But, every now and then, Stampin' Up! offers a Paper Pumpkin kit to customers across the globe!

The Bouquet of Hope Paper Pumpkin Kit is the latest kit that has been made available to all markets. It provides a way to offer comfort, care, and condolences to those enduring life’s challenges. With beautiful blooms and supportive sentiments, this kind-hearted kit will allow you to soothe others’ sorrow and share your sympathy in a heartfelt, handmade way! While you can create nine comforting cards—three each of three designs, plus coordinating envelopes—with the kit’s components, the versatile stamp set included in the kit can be used to uplift loved ones during trying times, any time. And, if you snagged a stack of Flower & Field Designer Series Paper during Sale-A-Bration, you can combine it with the kit’s extra elements and enjoy even more coordinated cardmaking!

The kit contains the following items:

• The Bouquet of Hope Stamp Set, an exclusive stamp set not available anywhere else!
• A Stampin’ Spot
• Enough materials to create nine cards, including patterned card bases, decorative die-cut pieces, embellishments, and more!
• Nine coordinating envelopes
• Adhesive

A clear block is not included. Would you like to take a closer look? Here's the video that was released in the USA to promote this kit earlier in the year:

I will be running an online craft-along with this kit on Monday 10th May, to both craft, chat and make the kit and look at alternative ways to use the contents and leftovers too. Anyone who has purchased a kit is welcome to join me - just get in touch for the details. If you would like to order one, the Bouquet of Hope Paper Pumpkin kit is available in my online store for £20, whilst supplies last. Get yours today!

BOUQUET OF HOPE PAPER PUMPKIN KIT (ENGLISH) (£20.00)