Happy Monday everyone! I had a little extra crafty time yesterday so decided to make a quick card using the current Freshly Made Sketches layout by Jen T, which I love:

Those stems were a great opportunity to make another card using the skeleton leaves in the Tropical Layers Dies combined with the Artfully Layered stamp set and a sliver of Artfully Composed designer series paper  - take a look:

I added a little hatched diecut detail to my mat layer and used the colours from the paper for my leaves and sentiment, finishing with a sprinkling of retired enamel dots for a little extra pop of colour: 

I am so sad this bundle is retiring at the end of this month - the Tropical Layers Dies are just fabulous and the sentiments in the co-ordinating stamp set so useful. If this bundle is still on your wishlist, grab it now before it's too late - it's currently on sale, links to the online store are 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. 

Enjoy your day - mine is all stamping an admin today! I'll be back tomorrow with another project for our new challenge over at CAS Colours & Sketches. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

ARTFULLY LAYERED CLING STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£16.10)

TROPICAL LAYERS DIES (£29.70)

ARTFULLY COMPOSED 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£7.52)

STYLISH SHAPES DIES (£28.00)

BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£8.25)

EVENING EVERGREEN CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£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 Claire to host this week and she has a patriotic colour challenge for us to work with:

 I started out today's card not wanting to use anything other than Claire's trio of chosen colours, but also not wanting to create a patriotic Fourth of July card, since living in the UK we don't celebrate American Independence Day so I don't have much cause to send this kind of card. I did end up going a little rogue - take a look at my card below and you'll see what I mean:

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

All About The Background - I had seen a great Instagram post recently by the talented Melody Hyde where she used the Sailboat Builder punch to create a fun background (you can see that card here) so decided I would have a go at creating something similar. I punched a whole bunch of red, white and blue sails, then decided to create a pattern using the red and blue ones. How fun is that?!

Patriotism Of Sorts - Having laid out my background, it did look a little plain so I decided to experiment with some tone-on-tone stamping. I did end up using both stars and stripes, creating my patterns using a tiny star from the 'Penguin Place' stamp set (available again 1st July) and some stripes using an old retired set called 'Your Presents'. Now before the eagle-eyed amongst you point out that my stars and stripes are the wrong way around for the American flag: I know - I stamped a whole bunch of sails, with red stars, blue stars, red stripes and blue stripes and decided this was the pattern combo I liked best - and since I wasn't setting out to create a 4th July card, that was fine. When I came to write up my post though I did have second thoughts and I did wonder if I should have gone with blue stars and red stripes, for fear that my American readers might question my patriotic allegiance or flag knowledge - but I'm hoping my explanation is sufficient to prevent me from a barrage of patriotic fury! Or even a different pattern altogether!! Of course, if you wanted to use this idea to create a stars-and-stripes 4th July card, be my guest - and do share your version with me!

Anyway, back to the card - you can see the detail of my tone-on-tone stamping below; I really like the resulting effect:

Amazing Thanks - I finished my card with a simple 'you are amazing' die cut sentiment using the Amazing Thanks Dies - I can use this card as a card to celebrate any kind of achievement. The sentiment also works well if you do want to use a similar layout and idea for a truly patriotic card to celebrate the achievements of those who fought for the independence of the USA from the British Empire all those years ago - you just need to switch those stars and stripes!

So what do you think? I love the way the Sailboat Builder Punch is used in such an unexpected way to create a fun background. Do you have any other punches that you use in interesting ways? Do leave me a comment below - I would love to hear your ideas!

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:

Enjoy your day; we will be having some early birthday celebrations today, as the eldest of the James Juniors turns 17 this week but since it's a super busy school week, we are spreading out the celebrations and going with a 'little and often' rather than 'one and done' approach! I'll be back soon with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

AMAZING THANKS DIES (ENGLISH) (£25.00)	SAILBOAT BUILDER PUNCH (£17.00)	REAL RED A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)	REAL RED CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	PACIFIC POINT A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)	PACIFIC POINT CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)
BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£8.25)

Today I have my card for the new challenge over at Festive Friday. 

The challenge that we are celebrating this week is 'World Music Day' which is on June 21st. 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. This week I totally got on board with the theme! I live in a household of music-makers and used music notes, black, white, embossing and circles and using the current layout over at Try Stamping on Tuesday this is what I came up with:

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

For The Record - 'For The Record' is a great set for music lovers! The vinyl record makes for a great centrepiece for any card and the variety of sentiments mean that it can be used for lots of different occasions too. In addition to the record on the front of my card, I added a trio of brightly coloured records to both the inside and my envelope to decorate - here you can also see one of the sentiments in this set:

An Embossing Double - I have both wet and dry embossing on my card: I heat-embossed my sentiment and vinyl record for added shine to highlight the groove detail and added a dry embossed background layer of notes and sheet music using my Merry Melody Embossing folder:

The challenge over at The Alphabet Challenge Blog is 'E is for Embossing' this week so I'll be joining in with my card there too.

An Unexpected Find - Did you recognise the designer paper I used on my card today? It's actually taken from the new 'Butterfly Kisses' paper pack. The stripes in the design are diagonal, but I cut the sheet at an angle (you can see it in the photo at the bottom of the post) and then cut the lines at different heights - I thought it looked like the outputs on a sound mixing desk and it was a great way to add a pop of bright colour to my music-themed card. What do you think - does it work? I'd love to know your thoughts - please do leave me a comment below!

 I hope you like today's card - if you are considering adding the 'For The Record' stamp set to your collection, you only have until the end of the month to do so before it retires for good. The good news is that it is currently available as part of the Last Chance Promotion at 50% off for just £10.50 - bargain!

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

FOR THE RECORD CLING STAMP SET (£10.50)	BUTTERFLY KISSES 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£11.25)	MERRY MELODY 3D EMBOSSING FOLDER (£9.50)	STARRY SKY A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)	BASIC BLACK A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)	FRESH FREESIA A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)
BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£9.75)	BASICS EMBOSSING POWDERS (£17.00)	VERSAMARK PAD (£9.00)	CLASSIC MATTE DOTS (£6.50)

It's Tuesday and time for a new challenge over at CAS Colours & Sketches. We are into June so it's all change! Samantha is hosting this month and our first challenge is a colour challenge: 

This trio of colours are perfect for florals so for my card today I pulled out one of my new favourites, the 'Sending Smiles' bundle, for a clean and simple card - take a look:

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

I stamped my stems and leaves directly onto my card base, and blended some additional Pear Pizzazz ink along the bottom edge of my card base, then stamped my flower heads and sentiments onto a separate piece of white cardstock and diecut them with the Sending Dies in order that they would stand out from the background. A trio of brass butterflies complete the front of my card:

I also added a little extra stamping to the inside of my card - no naked insides here: 

The 'Sending Smiles' stamp set is great for clean and simple cards and has a great variety of sentiment combinations too. Combined with this colour combination, this purple-lover couldn't be happier! 

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:

SENDING SMILES BUNDLE (ENGLISH) (£46.75)	BRUSHED BRASS BUTTERFLIES (£9.25)	GORGEOUS GRAPE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	CRUSHED CURRY CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	PEAR PIZZAZZ CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	BLENDING BRUSHES (£11.75)
BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£8.25)

I had a little crafty time yesterday so today I'm sharing an extra card that uses this week's Global Design Project #GDP345 colour palette and the sketch layout over at Just Add Ink - take a look:

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

I thought the GDP colours would be perfect to colour one of the 'This Birthday Piggy' images so I decided to make this moped-riding porcine the focus of my colouring today and used my Stampin' Blends in each of the challenge colours to bring him to life.

The sketch layout was great to showcase some designer series paper; I decided to go with a tone-on-tone look using some of my In-Color designer paper in Starry Sky to match my cardbase - I thought the pattern co-ordinated with the confetti coming from the birthday piggy's moped - what do you think?

I finished my sentiment on the inside of my card and added another partially stamped image to decorate:

I think this is a fun image that would appeal to young and old alike. I'll be adding it to my stash of cards for young boys - I always need some of those! I'm also entering it over at SUO Challenges for my second entry into their 'kids cards' challenge.

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 the rest of your day and I'll be back soon with another project. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

THIS BIRTHDAY PIGGY CLING STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£22.00)	2022–2024 IN COLOR™ 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 CM) DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£11.25)	STYLISH SHAPES DIES (£28.00)	TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (£5.75)	STARRY SKY A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)	SWEET SORBET A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)
STARRY SKY STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (£8.50)	SWEET SORBET STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (£8.50)	PETAL PINK STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (£8.50)	SMOKY SLATE STAMPIN' BLENDS COMBO PACK (£8.50)	BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£9.75)

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 a fun theme challenge for you to work with:

I still had my Nothing's Better Than set out on my desk from Friday's cards out on my desk, so I decided to use the current Atlantic Hearts sketch layout and play along with the In-Color challenge over at Hand Stamped Sentiments and set about recreating the colourful cocktails on our challenge board this week - take a look:

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

I cut a whole bunch of stitched rectangles in glimmer paper in each of the new in-colours and laid them on my card base in alternating colours, with the lighter shades at the top and the darker shades bottom. I then added my sentiment and my colourful cocktail glass. I brushed my cocktail with clear Wink of Stella - along with the glimmer paper, this makes for one sparkly card!

I finished my sentiment on the inside of my card and added another cocktail for good measure:

I also added a stamped cocktail to the front of my envelope - it's definitely happy hour for the recipient of this 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 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:

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

NOTHING'S BETTER THAN PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£21.00)	LOVE YOU MORE THAN DIES (£28.00)	STYLISH SHAPES DIES (£28.00)	STITCHED RECTANGLE DIES (£33.00)	2022–2024 IN COLOR 6" X 6" (15.2 X 15.2 CM) GLIMMER PAPER (£11.25)	BASIC WHITE A4 THICK CARDSTOCK (£8.25)
TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (£5.75)	STARRY SKY CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	TAHITIAN TIDE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	PARAKEET PARTY CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	SWEET SORBET CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)

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 was tempted to do something with lemons, as I love the bright yellow of the lemons against the blue in our inspiration photo today, however I have had a rainbow-themed idea percolating in my head for a little while so decided to try that out instead. As a result, I ended up wtih not one but two cards for you today - take a look:

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

Rainbow Pastels Coffee - I started off with this card that was inspired by the pastel rainbow colours over at Fusion (you can see them on the badge at the bottom of this post). I stamped and diecut a collection of coffee cups using the Nothing's Better Than stamp set and Love You More Than co-ordinating dies, and adhered them across the centre of my slimline card. I added a simple stamped sentiment either side, with the diecut 'coffee' added on top using adhesive foam sheet:

 I carried the sentiment and coffee cup theme through to the inside (and did the same with my second card too):

 I was going for a clean and simple card with lots of white space and could have stopped there, but decided that it would be fun to add a selection of sequins from my stash that co-ordinated with my rainbow colours around the cups for a little extra sparkly detail - it's also a nod to the round plates in the Fusion photo. Check out how pretty they shine:

Rainbow Brights Cocktails - Having completed this card, I thought it would be fun to make another card with the same idea, this time using the cocktail glass in the Nothing's More Than set. I changed up my rainbow of colours from pastels to brights (I was thinking more of a day to night vibe!) for my second card:

The cocktail glasses are larger than the coffee cups, so I went for a more uniform positioning across the centre of the card and placed my stamped sentiments to either side for better balance. I wanted to preserve my white space so didn't add as many sparkles this time; I still couldn't resist a few iridescent rhinestones to add to my cocktail party feel though!

So which are you - Team Coffee of Team Cocktails? Today it's a Bank Holiday here in the UK to celebrate Her Majesty The Queen's Platinum Jubilee - 70 years on the throne, wow! I think this means I'll be doing both as the day progresses; any excuse to raise a glass, ma'am!

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:

NOTHING'S BETTER THAN PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£21.00)	LOVE YOU MORE THAN DIES (£28.00)	FOAM ADHESIVE SHEETS (£7.50)	SAHARA SAND A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)	BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£9.75)	TUXEDO BLACK MEMENTO INK PAD (£5.75)
BASIC BLACK A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)	FRESH FREESIA CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	BALMY BLUE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	MINT MACARON CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	SO SAFFRON CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	PALE PAPAYA CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)
CALYPSO CORAL CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	FLIRTY FLAMINGO CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	POPPY PARADE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	PUMPKIN PIE CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	DAFFODIL DELIGHT CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	GRANNY APPLE GREEN CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)
BERMUDA BAY CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	ORCHID OASIS CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	HIGHLAND HEATHER CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)	IRIDESCENT RHINESTONES BASIC JEWELS (£7.00)

It's Thursday and time for a new challenge over at TicTacToe! It's my turn to host this week and this is the fun board that Team X and I are playing along with: 

I went on the diagonal from top left down with Spots or Stripes (I chose stripes), Circle and Free and decided to take Carol's fun inspo photo over at Just Us Girls along with the sketch over at Try Stamping on Tuesday to showcase more fabulous new designer series paper - take a look:

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

I took my inspiration from the pastel bicycles in the JUGS inspo photo and chose two contrasting patterns of paper from the 'Design A Daydream' designer series paper pack, one featuring bold stripes and the other featuring pastel-coloured bicycles to feature on my card today. Design A Daydream is an exclusive 48-sheet pack of designer series paper that can be yours when you earn hostess rewards as a result of either hosting a party or placing a qualifying order and has lots of other great patterns too. I added a simple hello sentiment from the 'Sentimental Swirls' stamp set to the top banner and finished with a focal point of a Petal Pink single diecut bicycle from the Windmill Field Dies with a (retired) flower embellishment to decorate its basket:

What do you think? If you are dreaming of bicycles too and would like to get your hands on some of this paper, give me a call to chat about arranging a party - I would love to hear from you and book something in the diary.

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 evening; I'll be back tomorrow for the second day of our Bank Holiday Jubilee weekend here in the UK with my card for our new challenge over at As You See It. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used: 

DESIGN A DAYDREAM 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) HOST DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£17.00)	WINDMILL FIELDS DIES (£31.00)	STYLISH SHAPES DIES (£28.00)	STITCHED RECTANGLE DIES (£33.00)	SENTIMENTAL SWIRLS PHOTOPOLYMER STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£21.00)	POOL PARTY A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)
DAFFODIL DELIGHT A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)	BLACKBERRY BLISS A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)	BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£9.75)	PETAL PINK A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)	BLACKBERRY BLISS CLASSIC STAMPIN' PAD (£7.50)

Today I'm sharing a quick masculine card, perfect for the challenge over at Inspire.Create that uses the current sketch over at Sketch Saturday:

I thought this was a great sketch layout that was perfect to showcase the new He's The Man designer series papers - take a look:

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

The papers in the He's The Man Suite are fabulous - a great selection of masculine designs covering everything from cars, to camping, cooking and lots more besides. Better still, the paper pack includes two whole sheets of pre-diecut pieces that can be used to embellish your cards - no stamping required! I used to different paper patterns and one of the diecuts from the pack, along with some retired Crushed Curry twine that picked up the yellow on the tent and a couple of diecut trees from the (retired) Christmas Trees Dies that reflected the shape of the trees on the DSP:

That's it - simple as that! I'm also entering today's card over at The Alphabet Challenge where they are on 'D is for Diecuts' this week - the diecuts in this set really are the best!

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 love these papers so much I am going to feature them in an upcoming class - you can read all about it here and do get in touch if you'd like to register.

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

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

HE'S THE MAN 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 CM) SPECIALTY DESIGNER SERIES PAPER (£14.00)

CLASSIC MATTE DOTS (£6.50)

MINT MACARON A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)

EARLY ESPRESSO A4 CARDSTOCK (£8.75)

It's Tuesday and time for a new challenge over at CAS Colours & Sketches. There are 5 Tuesdays in May so we are ending the month with the double: one of our previous sketches and a retired colour combination. For Shannon's final challenge as hostess she chose the following:  

For my card today I grabbed a punch bundle that is perfect for a quick and simple thank you card that will really make the most of these retro colours - take a look:

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

I used my Basic Borders Dies for a simple angled layered border with a simple dotted detail, and used my Flowers of Friendship stamp set to heat emboss a sentiment on my Island Indigo card base and stamp a trio of flowers in Island Indigo onto the other two colours and punched them out with the flowers and Leaves punch and finished them with some retired Island Indigo enamel dot centres:  

Super simple and could be easily recreated in colours that are currently available.

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! colour 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 and news of a great new promotion too. Until then, happy stampin'!

Stampin' Up! Supplies Used:

BASIC BORDERS DIES (£27.00)

FLOWERS OF FRIENDSHIP CLING STAMP SET (ENGLISH) (£20.00)

FLOWERS & LEAVES PUNCH (£18.00)

BASIC WHITE A4 CARDSTOCK (£9.75)

BASICS EMBOSSING POWDERS (£17.00)