Today I've a quick post as I'm playing catch-up to share a quick card that I made using this week's sketch over at The Global Design Project:

I considered all those lines and came up with this card using the new Basics (Pack 3) washi tape:

Super simple, I inset my stripes and used my top mat to frame them, then added a layered flower and sentiment using the Oh So Eclectic stamp set and co-ordinating Eclectic Layers Thinlits Dies. Washi tape is so useful for easy cards and I love that the new ones come in shades of colour across one area of the colour spectrum and are of differing widths. 

I've been making lots of samples using this set in readiness for my technique class that features it next week so have lots more where this came from, including another one using the same sketch that I'll share tomorrow after my Paper Players post.

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'll be back tomorrow with my card for this week's new challenge over at The Paper Players and another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Oh So Eclectic Clear-Mount Bundle	Whisper White A4 Thick Cardstock	Layering Squares Framelits Dies	Basics Pack 3 Washi Tape	Soft Sky Classic Stampin' Pad
Bermuda Bay Classic Stampin' Pad	Night Of Navy Classic Stampin' Pad	Night Of Navy A4 Cardstock	Pearl Basic Jewels

I'm having a busy week as the youngest of the James Juniors is on the last week of the school year this week so blogging is having to take something of a back seat whilst I get other work things in order and prepare for the long summer break! I did find time yesterday to make a card for a couple of challenges that I wanted to share with you today. Yes, another scorcher here in the UK today and I'm sharing a Christmas card! My original inspiration was this rather perplexing sketch over at CAS(E) This Sketch:

It's been swirling around in my creative subconscious for days and I was keen to play along as I love their sketches but when combined with this week's challenge over at Stamp Ink Paper I finally found my answer  - take a look:

My 'Star of Light' stamp set to the rescue! This stamp set has to me one of my most-used Christmas sets last year and worth it for that fabulous swirl of trailing sparkle alone in my opinion. Some background sponging and a white glimmer star, cut using my Starlight Thinlits Dies, completes the picture. I even remembered to take a photograph of the inside to show you, so that you can see how the greeting follows on:

A card that took longer to execute than to explain, but I guess that's the beauty of the creative process! If you don't have this set, I can definitely recommend it; buy both the stamp set and co-ordinating thinlits this month and you will not only be able to get a head start on your Christmas cards, you'll get a £5 voucher to spend next month 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. 

I've a busy couple of days ahead but promise I'll be back soon with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Star Of Light Photopolymer Stamp Set	Starlight Thinlits Dies	Soft Sky A4 Cardstock	Soft Sky Classic Stampin' Pad	Bermuda Bay Classic Stampin' Pad
Island Indigo Classic Stampin' Pad	Dazzling Diamonds Glimmer Paper	Embossing Buddy	Versamark Pad	White Stampin' Emboss Powder
Rhinestone Basic Jewels

Today I'm here with a post that should have gone live on Saturday but appears to have had some scheduling issues - but it's news that's too good not to share! First things first: BONUS DAYS ARE BACK! Do you remember this promotion from last year? It was so successful, Stampin' Up! have decided to repeat it this year.

For every £45.00 you spend between 1 July and 31 July (before delivery), you’ll get a £4.50 Bonus Days coupon that you can use between 1 and 31 August . Since our new annual catalogue has only been out a month ago, you will probably still have some items on your wish list and this is a great opportunity to shop from it and make savings when you shop again in August with your coupons!

There are some details in terms of small print that you need to take note of, as follows: 

• Promotion period: 1–31 July 2017
• Redemption period: 1–31 August 2017
• An email address is required to participate in this promotion; Bonus Days coupon codes can only be delivered via email.
• It is strongly recommended that you both save emails containing their Bonus Days coupon codes AND write down the coupon codes in a safe place. Codes cannot be resent if the email is lost, and lost codes cannot be recovered.
• Bonus Days coupon codes can be redeemed for any product, excluding Starter Kits.
• There is no limit to the number of coupons you can receive per order or throughout the duration of the promotion.
• There is no limit on the number of coupons you can use on an order during redemption.

This is such a great promotion - I get to buy even more from my wishlist, then as a demonstrator I can use my coupons in August against my pre-order from the new Autumn-Winter catalogue - woohoo!  For customers there is also going to be the early release of a new exclusive Christmas bundle called 'Carols Of Christmas' for sale from 1 August, so you could get started early with some  and use your coupons to get a great deal!

Don't forget if you are placing an order online to also include this month's hostess code JG7PHQKR to receive a free thank you gift from me too!

Here is a sneak peak of the exclusive bundle available from 1st August - you can choose to spend your coupon on this bundle or any other items of your choice!

Can't wait until 1st August to get your hands on this great new stamp set? Well, there's more! All of us at Stampin' Up! miss Christmas so much that we decided to have another one right now with a fantastic offer for anyone out there who would like to join my team this month! 

Between 1 and 31 July, every new recruit gets an Essentials Gift Pack (worth 63,50 € / £47) plus the Carols of Christmas Stamp Set (worth 24 € / £18) from the upcoming autumn/winter catalogue added to their starter kit for free! This means that new recruits will get products and business supplies worth a whopping 262,50 € / £195 for just 129 € / £99 with free shipping!

Here's what's included in the Essentials Gift Pack:

This is a great collection of basic items that along with your starter kit will enable you to hit the ground running and easily run your first event and share your love of stamping with a friend or two. 

Here's a close-up of the Carols of Christmas stamp set:

There has never been a better time to join Stampin' Up!: we are at the beginning of a new quarter, so you will have a full 6 months before you need to meet your first quarterly minimum, and the run up to Christmas is a great time to build a business if you're looking to earn or boost your income doing something that you love. I am always keen to hear from people thinking about joining my team - why not give me a call to discuss what it could mean for you?

That's all from me today; happy shopping, knowing that you get a spending spree next month too!

It's Sunday and time for this week's new challenge over at The Paper Players! I am the hostess this week and I have a timely theme for you to work with:

We are almost at the end of the academic year here in the UK and so it's the perfect time for teacher thank you cards. It's also the start of exam results season: everything from Common Entrance Exams, to the 11 Plus, graduate degrees and next month GCSE and A Level results. Since our challenge is an international one and all countries have these things happening at different times, I thought I would broaden this week's theme to encapsulate all of these things. So whether it's a thank you for your favourite teacher or a message of congratulations, we would love to see them all in the gallery this week.

I've made my teacher thank yous already, however I know a number of children that sat GCSE exams this year and so will be requiring a few more congratulations cards than usual. I used today's challenge as an opportunity to get started! This week's sketch over at Freshly Made Sketches inspired my layout  - I turned it through 90 degrees - and created a few cards using the same design; take a look:

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

Text Ya Later - This set was one of the first on my wish list; perfect for those tricky teenager cards, this on-trend stamp set, with it's text-speak and humorous emoticons works for children and adults alike. How many of us are in family message groups that span generations and often result in some hilarious texting faux-pas? There is so much fun to be had with these stamps, with the ability to tailor the messages to a number of different occasions. There are also some great background stamps that enable you to infill the speech bubbles with colour with ease.

Stars In Their Eyes - For the strip detail, I cut a row of stars out of coloured cardstock using one of the thinlits in the Mini Treat Bag Thinlits set, to add to the celebratory feel.

A Neat Little Trick - If you look really closely at my card, you will see that the smiley face emoticon has been punched out and added to my coloured speech bubbles. Want to know how I did it? I discovered that the single berry on the Holly Berry Builder Punch i just the right size to punch out these emoticons - handy, right?

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:

Before I go, I also have another card that I made at the same time using the same sketch and stamp set whilst everything was out on my desk that uses this week's colours over at The Global Design Project:

Rebecca saw my congratulations cards and immediately requested a fun card for one of her friends whose birthday it is this week:

Those words just crack me up every time I read them - gotta love predictive text right? I just know this set is going to get a lot of use this year!

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 look forward to seeing what you create with this week's theme. Enjoy the rest of your weekend as it will be over all too quickly; we are having the a relatively quiet day today since having had a very busy week it's the first day in over a week that the entire family will be at home together - how crazy is that?!  

I'll be back tomorrow with another project; until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

Text Ya Later Photopolymer Stamp Set	Pick A Pattern Designer Series Paper	Basic Black A4 Cardstock	Whisper White A4 Thick Cardstock	Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad
Mini Treat Bag Thinlits Dies	Crushed Curry Classic Stampin' Pad	Real Red A4 Cardstock	Real Red Classic Stampin' Pad

Before I share today's project, I just want to give you a reminder that today is the final day for the 'We <3 Hosts' promotion where you can earn an extra £30 of rewards with an order of £300 or more. If you would like to refresh your memory on the details, you can find them here. You can place your order online or alternatively feel free to call me if you'd like to place your order over the phone. It's also the final day for this month's hostess code - if you are placing an order online for between £25 and £150, don't forget to add the code B3C3DUB6 to receive an extra thank you in the post from me.

Today I'm sharing another of the cards I designed for one of my recent team training meetings - you can see one of our other makes here. This one features probably my favourite of the new in-colours, lemon lime twist:

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

Lovely Words For A Friend - I used the Lovely Words Thinlits for the 'friend' diecut on my card, snipping it away from the oval so that I could use it standalone. These are such great thinlits with so many ways they can be used to create interest on your cards. 

CASE The Kit - The design of my card was inspired by one of the cards in the new 'Hello Friend' heat embossing product kit on page 16 of the new annual catalogue. One of the business topics we discussed at team training was how Stampin' Up!'s kits can benefit your business and our make and takes all included opportunities to practice the techniques and skills required to demonstrate with this kit effectively. There's nothing like being prepared and I'm sure my team would agree that team training is great for this kind of thing. Check out this video from the home office team that shows you the Hello Friend Kit in more detail:

Stampin' Up!'s kits are great for a crafty get-together with friends; if you're reading this and would like to arrange one with me to guide you through the fun techniques, then do get in touch. 

Copper Trim - To tie in with the dip-embossed copper of my diecut sentiment, I finished my card with a length of the new copper trim. This is a really versatile trim option for cards, home decor and gifts; silky smooth, you can use it like ribbon as it ties beautiful bows, but you can also split it and unravel it and use it like net, or even stretch it and use it as a cover for small items such as chocolates (a little like a sock!) 

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:

Lovely Inside & Out Clear-Mount Bundle	Lemon Lime Twist A4 Cardstock	Tranquil Tide A4 Cardstock	Tranquil Tide Classic Stampin' Pad	Fresh Florals Designer Series Paper Stack
1/4" Copper Trim	Copper Stampin' Emboss Powder	Versamark Pad	Whisper White A4 Thick Cardstock	Heat Tool (Uk)

Today I'm sharing another of the cards from my recent technique class featuring the Happy Birthday Gorgeous bundle. The outside is a CASE (copy and share everything) of the card on page 76 of the annual catalogue:

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

Hip Hip Hooray - Today's card again features the 'Happy Birthday Gorgeous' stamp set, this time focusing on the balloons rather than the flowers for decoration, and also highlights the Happy Birthday Thinlit. These items are available as a bundle and whilst the thinlit is proving popular as a standalone item with many of my customers, the stamp set really is worth a look: flowers and balloons that have universal appeal and lots of great birthday sentiments, some of which also co-ordinate with the classic label punch, that I've used for the 'hip hip hooray' on my card front today. Besides, with a 10% discount when you buy both items, you are also getting even more value from your purchases - just sayin' :-)

A Happy Birthday Surprise - So you might be thinking I've lost the plot, as I mentioned above I was featuring both items in the bundle and the Happy Birthday Thinlit is no-where to be seen. Well, look what awaits when you open the card:

There it is! I made an easy pop-up mechanism so that as the recipient opens the card, they get a big, bold birthday message - how fun is that? This is so easy to do: you just need to make a couple of slits a few centimetres in from each side along the central fold and add a couple of additional scorelines in between them, then adhere the base of your diecut to the pop-out section. 

A Hint Of Fancy Foil - Lastly, for a little pizzazz I added a few strips of the super-shiny Foil Frenzy cardstock with the Tangerine Tango pattern to both the outside and inside of my card. I will be using most of mine for boxes and packaging as it is super sturdy, although it's worth keeping any offcuts to use on cards as a little goes a long way.

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:

Happy Birthday Gorgeous Photopolymer Bundle	Balloon Bouquet Punch	Foil Frenzy Specialty Designer Series Paper	Crumb Cake A4 Cardstock	Crumb Cake Classic Stampin' Pad
Lemon Lime Twist A4 Cardstock	Lemon Lime Twist Classic Stampin' Pad	Peekaboo Peach A4 Cardstock	Tangerine Tango Classic Stampin' Pad	Pool Party A4 Cardstock
Pool Party Classic Stampin' Pad	Pool Party Solid Baker’S Twine	Classic Label Punch

Today I'm sharing one of the cards that I made with the ladies in my technique class last week featuring the Happy Birthday Gorgeous stamp set that is perfect for the current keyword theme over at The Challenge and features 4 out of 5 of the keywords:

Can you identify which four feature on today's card? Here it is:

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

Happy Birthday Gorgeous Floral Wreath - The minute I saw the 'Happy Birthday Gorgeous' stamp set, I knew that the combinations of flowers, leaves and seed heads would lend themselves to a floral wreath. I stamped a basic wreath shape with the leaf stem, then fussy cut a variety of individual leaves, flowers and seed heads to embellish my wreath. This took a little while, but I hope you'll agree it was so worth it - I just love this card! 

A Fancy Fold - The card base itself is a square double z joy fold card, measuring  5 1/2" square when folded. A fancy fold is a great way to add interest to a square card and is really easy to make. The card base measures 11" x 5 1/2", scored at 2 3/4" and 5 1/2" on the long side. The smaller z fold panel measures 9 1/4" x 3 3/4" and is also scored at 2 3/4" and 5 1/2". It also allows for a fancy ribbon bow - here I've used the lovely Fresh Fig finely woven ribbon.

Petal Garden - My colour scheme was inspired by my paper choice for the rear panel of my card, which I took from the Petal Garden designer series paper stack. There are some gorgeous patterns in this pack, along with an alternative Calypso Coral colourway too. Here the rambling roses of my chosen pattern provided the perfect backdrop to my floral wreath. 

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. 

So - flowers, bright, birthday and square were my four - check out the design team cards over at The Challenge to see how they were inspired by the keywords.

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Happy Birthday Gorgeous Photopolymer Stamp Set	Petal Garden Designer Series Paper Stack	Whisper White A4 Thick Cardstock	Fresh Fig A4 Cardstock	Fresh Fig Classic Stampin' Pad
Sweet Sugarplum Classic Stampin' Pad	Old Olive Classic Stampin' Pad	Bermuda Bay Classic Stampin' Pad	Pool Party Classic Stampin' Pad	Fresh Fig 1/2" Finely Woven Ribbon

Today I'm sharing a card with a patriotic vibe which is perfect for the current challenges over at Fusion and SUO Challenges:

Ben needed a card for one of his school friends who is about to leave the UK and go to live in America, so a little stars and stripes were the order of the day:

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

Textured Stars and Stripes - I got my textured embossing paste out again for this card and using two retired stencils, in turn created my stars and stripes design. I love the depth the embossing paste gives to the overall finish and is really different to any of my previous patriotic designs. This is the third card featuring embossing paste I've shared in recent days and I'm having lots of fun with it. If you would like to learn more and get 'hands on' with this fun new product, it will be featuring in my upcoming technique class featuring the Oh So Eclectic Suite on 11th July - read more about it here and get in touch by the weekend if you'd like to book a place. The lovely people at Stampin' Up! have also made a short video to show easy embossing paste is to use - check it out here:

Get Glossy - I wanted a shine to contrast with the texture of my stars and stripes, so used glossy cardstock for my background and simply swiped my Real Red and Night of Navy ink pads in turn diagonally across my card base and waited for this to dry before adding the embossing paste. I love the shine this adds to the colour, although must confess it did cause the red to bleed through my embossing paste more than I would have liked, even with a second application, I think maybe because it is less absorbent than regular cardstock. 

A Banner For You - I finished my card with a two-tone double banner created with the 'Banners For You' stamp set and cut it out with the co-ordinating Bunch of Banners framelit and reversed the colours to contrast with my flag-inspired background.

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Embossing Paste	Palette Knives	A4 Glossy White Cardstock	Real Red A4 Cardstock	Real Red Classic Stampin' Pad
Night Of Navy A4 Cardstock	Night Of Navy Classic Stampin' Pad	Banners For You Photopolymer Stamp Set	Bunch Of Banners Framelits Dies	Versamark Pad
Silver Stampin' Emboss Powder	Heat Tool (Uk)

Another Monday, another week! I'm starting mine by sharing a card I made for this week's challenge over at CASology:

There are lots of great 'house' card options in the new Stampin' up! catalogue, not all great for clean and simple cards though. I decided that the 'At Home With You' set would fit the bill - take a look:

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

Welcome Home - 'At Home With You' is the perfect set for new home cards and so much more besides. A large front door with all manner of pots, wreaths and accessories to fancy up your house for many different occasions. What's more, it is also available in a discounted bundle with the At Home Framelits Dies, which negate the need for lots of fussy cutting of the accessories and also allow you to create opening doors that can house a message or surprise behind the door - how fun! I used the framelits on today's card to cut out my pots with ease and popped them up on some dimensionals for added depth.

Keeping It CAS - At first glance, this set with it's large door and many added details might not be your first choice for a clean and simple or CAS card. In order to preserve the balance of white space on my card, I decided to only stamp part of the door image and use the welcome door mat as my focal point, with the addition of the dimensional pots to draw the eye towards it. It's quite clear that this is a front door, without needing the whole image - a great way to keep the design CAS but still be in keeping with the challenge theme. 

Who Lives In A House Like This? - I did a quick internet search on most popular front door colours and read an interesting article about what colour should you paint your front door. Many of us settle for the more traditional and popular black, white, grey, wood, blue, red or yellow, but there are equally many who use their front door as the place to express their inner craving for colour, with a bright turquoise, yellow or pink like this one:

  (Image: Getty)

I decided to use this hot pink door with cool aqua walls as the inspiration for my colourful card today - here's my colour combination if you'd like to save it to Pinterest for future inspiration:

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

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

Enjoy your day. I'm off to catch up with a friend for lunch and then back to tackle my mountain of ironing - once I've replaced my iron that is, as mine gave up the ghost yesterday. A great excuse to not have to continue battling the basket, but the pile won't iron itself so a new one is needed! I'll be back tomorrow with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

At Home With You Photopolymer Bundle	Whisper White A4 Thick Cardstock	Aqua Painters	Basic Black Archival Stampin’ Pad	Melon Mambo Classic Stampin' Pad
Pool Party Classic Stampin' Pad	Tangerine Tango Classic Stampin' Pad	Bermuda Bay Classic Stampin' Pad	Emerald Envy Classic Stampin' Pad	Crushed Curry Classic Stampin' Pad

Welcome to my second post of the day! You can read my earlier regular Paper Players post here. I was invited by the lovely Janet Wakeland of Remarkably Created to participate in her We Love Hosts Blog Tour and jumped at the chance. This month's 'We <3 Hosts' promotion, where you can earn an additional £30 in Stampin' Rewards when you place an individual order for or reach qualifying party sales of £300 or more during the month of June, is a great opportunity to make a dent on your wishlist and pick up extra host rewards into the bargain. You can use these rewards to buy anything you like, including exclusive hostess-only stamp sets. There are six fabulous new sets just for hosts in the new annual Stampin' Up! catalogue: Background Bits, Dare To Dream, Feathery Friends, In The City, Tranquil Tulips and You're Delightful. You can see each of them below:

Background Bits Clear-Mount Stamp Set	Dare To Dream Photopolymer Stamp Set	Feathery Friends Clear-Mount Stamp Set
In The City Photopolymer Stamp Set	Tranquil Tulips Photopolymer Stamp Set	You're Delightful Clear-Mount Stamp Set

Today's blog hop features these exclusive hostess sets and contains a ton of creative inspiration and ideas of how they can be used on your papercrafting projects. I am using the Feathery Friends set today, a delightful combination of line drawn folk-art inspired birds and flowers. This set is perfect for colouring, so I decided to use it to create a little kit for 'colouring on the go', similar to one shared with us at Onstage Live in Amsterdam back in April - take a look:

I took a full-size wood mount stamp case and firstly created a custom cover insert, using a piece of Whisper White cardstock measuring 11 1/4" by 7 1/2" and scored on the landscape side 5" in from each side:

I stamped a whole bunch of Stampin' Up! notelets in varying designs using the Feathery Friends stamps and Archival black ink, then simply put them in the box with a pack of Stampin' Up! Watercolour Pencils and a blender pen to complete my kit:

This is just perfect to keep in my handbag or the car, so that I have something creative to do in those precious free minutes when I'm sat in the school carpark at pickup time or when I'm sat in the waiting room at the doctors or dentists. I find colouring so relaxing and having pre-stamped all my cards, I can both enjoy the time out and do something productive at the same time. The sentiment in this set is great for little notes to send to my team and the cards I left sentiment-free will work for all kinds of occasions.

The blender pen is a must-have to give a smooth finish to your colouring - I took a quick picture of one of the cards that I coloured already just to show you what a lovely finish you get when you use it with the watercolour pencils:

I hope you like my project showing just one of the ways you can use the Feathery Friends hostess set. There is still time to host a party or place a qualifying order to take advantage of this promotion - either place your order online via the product links below or alternatively call me or drop me a line - I would be happy to help. In addition, remember you also have the option to use hostess rewards earned towards the purchase of a Stampin' Up! starter kit; if this is something you'd like to know more about, I'd love to have a no-obligation chat with you about joining my team and the benefits of becoming a demonstrator.

To see more great projects using Stampin' Up's exclusive host reward sets, you can click forward to go to the next post in the hop, Stacy Lane, or if you missed it you can click backward to visit the previous blog, belonging to Laura Milligan:

If you lose your place, the complete list of participants can be found below: 

Exclusive Host Rewards Stamp Set Blog Tour

I'll be back tomorrow with another project; until then, happy hopping!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

Feathery Friends Clear-Mount Stamp Set	Watercolor Pencils	Blender Pens	Whisper White Note Cards & Envelopes	Full Wide Stamp Cases
Basic Black Archival Stampin’ Pad	Whisper White A4 Cardstock