Happy Monday everyone! It's the start of a busy week here in the James household and I'm squeeking in with an early post using Cecile's fabulous sketch over at Freshly Made Sketches before I get ready for my final online card class of the year! Here is Cecile's sketch:

I still had those Peaceful Place papers out on my desk over the weekend and was cutting out log cabins with abandon, so knew that I had to use the sketch to feature another one - take a look:

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

I fussy cut another house and coloured my log cabin scene with my watercolour pencils and blended them with a blender pen, adding a liberal coat of clear Wink of Stella to the trees and snowy roof. Then came my moment of indecisiveness! I added a fussy cut fir tree for one of the sketch elements and I had decided that I was going to use my Stitched Snowflake Dies to add two snowflake impressions into my card base for the other two, however when I created my background in basic white it seemed a little flat. So I cut another panel, this time in Shimmery White, which was a little better, but still seemed to lack a little sparkle. So I went all-out and used a panel of (retired) white glimmer paper. This I LOVE - but it did prove difficult to photograph so that you could see the diecut snowflakes, amidst all that sparkle! I'm hoping you can see the idea a little better below:

As tricky as it was to capture on film, I absolutely love the sparkle and shimmer that a whole panel of glimmer paper adds and the diecut cut snowflake impressions are really effective in real life. A simple sentiment was all I needed to complete my card. So what do you think - is there ever something such as too much sparkle? I think not, but if you disagree, feel free to comment below! My super sparkly snowflakes are also perfect for a second play over at Inspired By this week - the first of their inspiration photos suggests they love a bit of snowflake sparkle!

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. 

It is so grey, wet and miserable here today I would definitely rather escape to my little log cabin in the snow. Alas, no such luck - my class ladies are calling and wouldn't be too impressed! Enjoy your day and I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

PEACEFUL PLACE 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) SPECIALTY DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£14.00)	LAYERING CIRCLES DIES (£33.00)	TIDINGS & TRIMMINGS PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£17.00)	BASIC GRAY A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	BASIC BLACK A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)
BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£9.00)	BASICS EMBOSSING POWDERS (£17.00)	VERSAMARK PAD (£8.75)	WATERCOLOR PENCILS (£15.00)	WATERCOLOR PENCILS ASSORTMENT 2 (£11.75)
WINK OF STELLA GLITTER BRUSH (£7.50)

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

We've had snow twice this week in my part of the world and the current freezing temperatures are definitely showing early signs of a winter wonderland! I decided to make another card using the current colours over at The Color Throwdown and decided to get creative with my Peaceful Place designer series papers and create my own idyllic winter wonderland - take a look:

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

Peaceful Place - I decided to fussy cut one of the log cabins from the Peaceful Place designer paper, across the upper horizon including some trees, and added this to a precut white circle, that I had added Polished Pink ink to with a blending brush and stamped on some snowflakes in Encore silver. I allowed the trees to overhang the circle border and liberally brushed the snowy areas of the scene with clear Wink of Stella. It's difficult to see on the photos, but this card is so sparkly in real life!

Evergreen Forest - I used another sheet of Peaceful Place designer series paper for my background, this time the sparkly silver snowflakes on a mottled grey background. I ran this panel through the Evergreen Forest Embossing folder to add a row of embossed fir trees to the background for added interest. Again, it's easier to see in real life - the texture adds subtle additional detail. I used the pink for my sentiment banner and borders for a pop of colour against the silver and grey:

Don't Forget The Inside - I carried the winter wonderland theme over to the inside of my card, adding a strip of the sparkly snowflake paper along with a couple of fussy-cut trees and a sentiment from the 'Snowflake Wishes' stamp set:

Doesn't that cosy log cabin look inviting? I could totally hole myself up there with my craft supplies and a roaring log fire for a week or two! 

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

PEACEFUL PLACE 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) SPECIALTY DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£14.00)	LAYERING CIRCLES DIES (£33.00)	CHRISTMAS TO REMEMBER CLING STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£20.00)	EVERGREEN FOREST 3D EMBOSSING FOLDER (£9.25)	POLISHED PINK A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	BASIC GRAY A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)
BLENDING BRUSHES (£11.25)	POLISHED PINK CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)	VERSAMARK PAD (£8.75)	METALLICS EMBOSSING POWDERS (£17.00)	SILVER FOIL 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) SPECIALTY PACK (£9.25)

Today I have a card that was inspired by this week's Color Throwdown colours that finally gave me the opportunity to get out on paper an idea that's been floating around in my head for a while:

The Peaceful Place designer series papers have some great designs that are perfect for adding colour to or creating scenes and the grey and silver were perfect with the addition of some Polished Pink to create a scenic Winter Wonderland - take a look:

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

Peaceful Place - One of the designs in the Peaceful Place pack comprises 4 6"x6" designs of a landscape of snowy trees. I cut the sheet into 4 then cut the bottom off each square and using a blending brush, I added some Polished Pink ink to the outer edges of the panel. I also added some stamped pink snowflakes, before flicking the paper with water then Frosted shimmer paint for splatter detail. I added another contrasting piece of paper for a border along the bottom of my card, along with a double ribbon bow.

Well Defined - I split the 'winter' sentiment in the 'Well Defined' stamp set and added the first part to a label on the front of my card, with the remainder on the inside to complete my sentiment:

I carried the winter wonderland theme over to the inside of my card, adding a strip of the sparkly snowflake paper along with a couple of fussy-cut trees and a sentiment from the 'Snowflake Wishes' stamp set.

I liked this card so much I made a second one at the same time - here's a shot of them both together:

I made two of these in the same colours to save time, but I think it would look great in other colours too. I think I'm going to cut up more of my paper and make some with Balmy Blue ink next.  

I'm also linking today's card up for a second entry into the current Christmas challenge over at SUO Challenges.

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. 

Enjoy your evening; I'll be back tomorrow with another project using these papers, this time for our new challenge over at The Paper Players. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

PEACEFUL PLACE 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) SPECIALTY DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£14.00)	WELL DEFINED CLING STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£10.00)	BASIC GRAY A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	BLENDING BRUSHES (£11.25)	POLISHED PINK CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)	SILVER FOIL 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) SPECIALTY PACK (£9.25)
POLISHED PINK 3/8" (1 CM) OPEN WEAVE RIBBON (£6.50)	SNOWFLAKE WISHES PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£24.00)

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 Betty is our featured designer this week. This is the fun board that we are playing along with: 

Betty made a fabulous board this week and I really was spoiled for choice! Having finally taken receipt of my Wintry 3D embossing folder this week after a very protracted wait, I knew I would have to use it on today's card. I went down the middle column of the grid with snowflakes/free/winter and used both the sketch layout over at Try Stamping on Tuesday and the sparkly snowflake in this week's Inspired By photo for a wintry card that is choc full of snowflakes and sparkle in equal measure - take a look:

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

A Wintry Ombre - I embossed two panels of basic white cardstock and another of ombre glimmer paper with the snowflake Wintry 3D embossing folder for some textured panels - I love how the snowflakes appear to swirl with the design. On the ombre glimmer paper, which is in hues of Night of Navy, I lightly sanded the embossed areas to highlight the texture and detail - you can see it more closely on the photo below:

The ombre glimmer paper is gorgeous and embosses beautifully - I just love the effect!

Tag-tastic - I used one of my Tailored Tag Dies to cut my tag as per the sketch, and stamped it with snowflakes and swirls, adding a sentiment heat-embossed onto a stitched label. I added an over-the-top bow using some sparkly ribbons and accented my tag with some glimmer paper snowflakes in white and navy. I cut these with my Stitched Snowflakes Dies; if you've had your eye on these and not yet ordered, I'm afraid you will be disappointed as they were one of the first things to fly off yesterday's 'Last Chance Products' retiring items list. If you missed that post, check it out here.

Merry Snowflakes Inside - I used the 'Snowflake Wishes' stamp for the details and sentiment on the front of my card, but added decoration and a further sentiment from the 'Merry Snowflakes' set to decorate the inside:

I know I made today's card as a seasonal thank you, but I think it's still ok to have a Christmassy sentiment on the inside too, don't you think? 

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'll hopefully be back tomorrow with another project, but no promises - the Christmas rush is getting the better of me! Until next time, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

SNOWFLAKE WISHES PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£24.00)	MERRY SNOWFLAKES CLING STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£10.00)	WINTRY 3D EMBOSSING FOLDERS (£9.25)	TAILOR MADE TAGS DIES (£20.00)	STITCHED SO SWEETLY DIES (£30.00)
BLUE ADHESIVE-BACKED GEMS (£7.50)	OMBRE 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) SPECIALTY PAPER (£9.25)	WHITE 3/8'' (1 CM) GLITTERED ORGANDY RIBBON (£8.00)	SIMPLY ELEGANT TRIM (£7.00)	NIGHT OF NAVY A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)
BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£7.75)

It's Tuesday and time for a new challenge over at CAS Colours & Sketches. I am your host for the month of November and as we near the end of the month this will be my last challenge as hostess. There are 5 Tuesdays in November so we are ending the month with the double: one of our previous sketches and a retired colour combination. For my final challenge I chose the following:  

Feel free to flip or rotate the sketch. 

For my card today I did turn the sketch through 180 degrees and used one of the Giving Gifts Dies featuring Santa and his reindeer as my focal point along with the Tailor Made Tags Dies to create a tag for my card - take a look:

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

I found some starry retired designer series paper in Delightful Dijon to use for my panel and it seemed more appropriate to have this running across the top rather than the bottom. I then cut my layered tag out of the remaining colours. I added a tiny diecut bow and rhinestone, along with a small sentiment from the retired ‘Itty Bitty Christmas’ stamp set stamped in Midnight Muse to complete my card:

I chose these colours because I thought they could be used for festive or non-festive cards and could also be substituted with similar current colours if you didn't have them.  To that end, and since I love these tag dies, I  decided to create a slight stepped up version of the same card that uses similar colours and current product. This time I also followed my sketch to the letter! I used a Very Vanilla base and added a panel of Simply Elegant Specialty Designer Series Paper, then added a ribbon bow using gold-trimmed Cherry Cobbler ribbon, along with my layered tag, along with a gold foil moon and stars and allowing more depth to the tag itself. 

You can see the layering of the tag more clearly in the picture below: 

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

GIVING GIFTS DIES (£29.00)	TAILOR MADE TAGS DIES (£20.00)	CHERRY COBBLER & GOLD 1/2'' (1.3 CM) METALLIC RIBBON (£7.50)	SIMPLY ELEGANT 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) SPECIALTY DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£14.00)	VERY VANILLA A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£7.75)	CHERRY COBBLER A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)
NIGHT OF NAVY A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	NIGHT OF NAVY CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)	GOLD FOIL SHEETS (£4.75)

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 my favourite, a sketch challenge for you to work with:

I struggled a little to decide what to do about the split background layer on today's card; I eventually decided to use a single, bright patterned paper from the Painted Christmas pack - take a look:

There are some gorgeous patterns in the Painted Christmas pack, all with a loose watercoloured feel. I love this red and white pattern but it needed an otherwise uncluttered card to show it off to best advantage. So I split the panel into three as per the sketch, then added a red label with a white heat-embossed sentiment, accented with some holly and foliage stamped with the Christmas Season stamp set, some loops of sheer red ribbon and some red sparkly gems to finish:

This card was actually quite straightforward to put together, but I spent ages procrastinating about which paper or papers to feature so seemed to take forever to design!! I really like the pop of red against the white though, with just a little green foliage too. I used one of the sentiments from 'Merriest Moments' - this is most certainly my favourite sentiment set in the current catalogue.

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 card up over at Global Design Project #GDP319 where the theme is 'Christmas'.

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; we have had a freezing few days here in the UK so today I will most definitely be staying indoors, keeping warm and might even indulge in a spot of festive baking! I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

CHRISTMAS SEASON BUNDLE (ENGLISH) (£49.50)	MERRIEST MOMENTS PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£20.00)	PAINTED CHRISTMAS 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£10.75)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£7.75)	REAL RED A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	REAL RED CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)
SHADED SPRUCE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)	EVENING EVERGREEN CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.00)	REAL RED 3/8" (1 CM) SHEER RIBBON (£6.50)	WONDERFUL GEMS (£7.50)	VERSAMARK PAD (£8.75)	BASICS EMBOSSING POWDERS (£17.00)

Today I'm sharing my design team card for our new challenge over at As you See It where it's time for a theme challenge:

I decided to use the sketch over at Try Stamping on Tuesday for my layout, grabbed my retired Playful Pets Designer Series Paper and embraced TSOT'S optional theme of 'peek a boo' with today's birthday card. This is what my card looks like when closed:

I used a simple birthday greeting from the 'Peaceful Moments' set inside my circle, adding a cat fussy cut from the DSP that fitted the shape perfectly. When you open the card, the magic slider causes a second sentiment to be revealed:

This sentiment is from the 'Pampered Pets' set, which I masked and stamped in sections in order that it would fit in my circle. I also added another cat - this one looks more than a little scared of the mouse though! Here's a close up:

Here's a little video I made to show the peek-a-boo in action:

As fun folds go, these cards are so easy to make - what fun!

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.

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

LAYERING CIRCLES DIES (£33.00)	PEACEFUL MOMENTS CLING STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£20.00)	PAMPERED PETS CLING STAMP SET (£20.00)	FLIRTY FLAMINGO A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	MELON MAMBO A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)	BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£9.00)
TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (£5.50)

This is my first post of a two-post Friday and I'm here with my card for the new challenge over at Festive Friday. 

The challenge that we are celebrating this week is 'Christmas Jumper Day' which is on 10th December this year. 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. No jumpers for me this week; instead I used red, green, gold, plaid and glitter as my starting point and this is what I came up with:

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

Wrapped In Plaid - First up - I based my card today around a scrap of retired Wrapped in Plaid designer series paper that I found in my scraps box. I just loved the mix of colours and not only did it feature gold, red and green so use three items on the inspiration list straight off the bat, it is perfectly festive to ... 

Delivering Cheer - ... paper-piece onto the skirt of my 'Delivering Cheer' party girl. For the top half I used the armful of gifts, all coloured with my Stampin' Blends to coordinate with her skirt. This is such a fun stamp set with so many mix and match options. It reminds me of the paper dressing up dolls I had as a child! I added another scrap of plaid along with a sentiment from the same set to the inside of my card:

All That Glitters - I heat embossed my cover sentiment in gold, added a gold Wink of Stella bow to my parcel pile and added a trio of gold gilded gems, but the real glitter comes from the retired Be Dazzling paper that I used for my mat layer - I can't tell you what a fabulous sparkle this adds in real life:

I love the finished look of this card; this is how I imagine I look on Christmas Day, although I'm sure my family would disagree!

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 Challenge Design team.

Ann Schach

Beth McCullough

Sharon Hashimoto Burkert

Melanie Hungerford

Helen Jennings

Stephanie Lanzalotto

Melva Peters

Jaydee

Diane Evans

Joanne James

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

DELIVERING CHEER PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (£17.00)	VERSAMARK PAD (£8.75)	METALLICS EMBOSSING POWDERS (£17.00)	TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (£5.50)	BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£9.00)	NIGHT OF NAVY A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)
NIGHT OF NAVY STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (£8.50)	CHERRY COBBLER STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (£8.50)	SHADED SPRUCE STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (£8.50)	GILDED GEMS (£6.50)

Today I have a quick card for that resulted from a combination of me seeing the current Inkspirational inspiration photo and my recent rummage through the retired Christmas stamp set pile:

I love the effect of that gold-on-black chair in the inspiration photo and thought it would be perfect for a card using the retired stamp 'The Newborn King' - take a look:

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

The main scene in this stamp is so effective when stamped in Versamark and heat membossed in metallic gold onto Basic Black cardstock. I stamped the main image, then added the star above the stable and mounted my stamped panel onto gold foil and a Basic Black cardbase. 

I added a combination of sentiments from the same stamp set to the inside of my card, along with a star stamped in encore metallic gold ink:

All done! I like to have a number of religious Christmas cards to send out and I definitely have my favourites in my retired stamp set stash to make them with - they set I used today (and the one I used on yesterday's card) are two of my favourites.

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 added a link to the basic supplies below, but obviously this doesn't include the stamp set as this is retired. 

I'm also linking today's card up over at SUO Challenges where they are all about Christmas for their next 3 challenges, so you should definitely check them out for some festive inspiration.

Enjoy your day and I'll be back tomorrow with another two projects as it's time for Two-Post Friday. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

STAMPARATUS (£46.00)

VERSAMARK PAD (£8.75)

METALLICS EMBOSSING POWDERS (£17.00)

BASIC BLACK A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.25)

GOLD FOIL SHEETS (£4.75)