Stampin' Up! Thoughtful Branches

Have you ever stepped out of your comfort zone?  Sometimes it's a challenge and at other times it's easy isn't it?  Well, today I'm playing with my new stamp set bundle (not a challenge OR out of my comfort zone teehee), and I've created my card to enter into a few challenges.  

If you know me, you'll know I'm NOT a pink girl (hence the jump a loooooong way out of my comfort zone!!), and I'm also more of a collage, vintage, earthy type stamper.......

Sooooo, this card is a challenge in MANY ways for me!!  

In the end, I like this card (even with the Melon Mambo pops!!), and I hope you do too!!

I've tried a neat little trick by 'tying' my ribbon together using washi tape - what do you think?

Be sure to head on over to each of these challenges - there are some wonderful cards to inspire you!!  Each of the graphics has a link to send you there - so make sure you check them out!!

For any supplies, shop here at http://www3.stampinup.com/ECWeb/default.aspx

Stampin' Up! Everyday Occasions for CASEing the Catty #88

Hello Sunday Blog Hoppers!!  Welcome to our Caseing the Catty Sunday blog hop where we Copy And Selectively Edit from the projects in our wonderful Stampin' Up! Catalogue.
And this week we are sharing with you our inspiration from the
Everyday Occasions Chapter - pages 66-91

And here is my inspiration for this week - page 89 and the cute little stamp set Badges and Banners with the coordinating Duet Banner and Best Badge punches - you have to love a stamp set and punch combo - it just makes crafting soooooo much easier!!! 

I love the little bird cage (I think it might be my favourite in the set!!) and so I've made my 'vintage' version of this card - it's totally identical to the catalogue project,

 only I've gone for a softer earthy look. (which is more my style too!!)

What do you think?  I've also gilded the cage with the gold wink of stella pen - fabulous!!!

And my card also features the DIVINE Serene Scenery DSP - for the central panel AND the central strip running down the middle of the card.  I also love the burlap ribbon bow too - I cut the ribbon in half lengthways to make a thinner ribbon, and then when it was tied into a bow it separated to make a multi bow - love it!!!  

When I came to complete my card, I couldn't decide between a crumb cake base, or the panel with very vanilla lightly sponged with crumb cake ink.  I've just received my new sponge brayers in my last Stampin' Up! order, and wanted to have a go with my new toys...... I think I need more practice, but it certainly worked just fine for this card!!

Which is your favourite?  

Now it's time for you to keep on hopping away until you get all the way around.  Our team is so talented and generously share their wonderful creativity with you so that you can be inspired by our fabulous catalogue over and over again!!

And when you've seen all the great projects, be sure to enter your own project into our monthly challenge by using the link below!!

And for a complete list of all of the design team and their blog posts, you'll find them using this link.

See you next week!!  

For any supplies, shop here at http://www3.stampinup.com/ECWeb/default.aspx

Vintage Leaves meets Flourish Thinlits

I do love this colour combination - Emerald Envy, Mint Macaron, and a touch of Delightful Dijon.

For any supplies, shop here at http://www3.stampinup.com/ECWeb/default.aspx

Designer Tin of Cards Kit

Check out this fantastic Kit!!

For any supplies, shop here at http://www3.stampinup.com/ECWeb/default.aspx

Detailed Floral Thinlits wedding card

The Detailed Floral Thinlits work so beautifully to make a gate fold card.  I've tied a ribbon around the entire card - and this can be slipped off without untying it.  The card inside then opens up for a greeting to be written inside.  

I've used the awesome Brushwork Alphabet to stamp the names of the lovely couple.

Make sure you watch this wonderful Youtube Video to show you some of the many ways you can use these thinlits.

For any supplies, shop here at http://www3.stampinup.com/ECWeb/default.aspx

Black and White with a POP of gold for SUO

Hello!!  We are celebrating Black and White with a POP of colour this week with our challenge at SUO (Stampin' Up! Only)

Well, instantly I thought of our great new DSP - Pop of Pink - which I bought because I really love the elegance of Black and White - the other side of all the papers features Melon Mambo (and I'm NOT a pink person, but I will get lots of awesome use out of this paper).

And the other black and white I thought of, was this gorgeous little panda made with the Fox Builder Punch.  I'd seen this little cutie here on YouTube, and just knew I wanted to create him too!!!  

For my POP of colour, I've added a little gold heart, or gold star along with some gold ribbon tied into a bow - this little guy just looks like a little gift doesn't he!!

The greeting is a sneak peek from a NEW stamp set you can purchase in August - stay tuned!!

And I loved him so much, I made him twice!!  

Now, we at SUO  would LOVE to see YOUR great black and white (with a POP of colour) creations!  Just add them in to our challenge blog site here!!

For any supplies, shop here at http://www3.stampinup.com/ECWeb/default.aspx

Stampin' Up! Birthday Blooms Watercolouring

I love watercolouring!! I love it a LOT - it makes me feel so very artistic!!  

And Birthday Blooms is the PERFECT set to have fun watercolouring.  

I tried something new this time with my watercolouring - I totally saturated the watercolour paper first, and then watercoloured the image as usual.  Because of the water already on the paper, this made the colour run and move around - giving the image a misty blurry effect which looks ever so artistic I think!!  

This week Paper Players have an awesome watercolouring challenge - I had to join in the fun !!  If you click on the graphic, you'll see the fantastic projects and inspiration from the design team!!

And because I was having such a grand time watercolouring - I've made 2 cards!!  This one has a traditional orientation and some gold thread wrapped around the image.

For any supplies, shop here at http://www3.stampinup.com/ECWeb/default.aspx

Stampin' Up! Seaside Shore CTC#87

Welcome back again to our Sunday Night blog hop!!  This week we are CASEing (Copy And share Everything) from the Artistic Expressions Chapter - and this is a chapter choc full of gorgeousness!!   I've started at the beginning - because I really wanted to test run this cute little stamp set Seaside Shore - I love fish images!!  

I've CASED the card in the centre of the image at the start of the chapter.... but it looks very different!!

The front panel is very similar to the original, and I love the multi colour greeting which I coloured with markers and then stamped.  The rest of the card is a bit of a mish mash of all the other images in the stamp set!!  

I've been super keen to try creating a Z-fold card - and I think having the fish swim along the base of the card on the Z totally works a treat!!!    The central panel is blank for the greeting.  This card will be posted to a friend of ours next week.  I think he'll love it!! (well, I hope so anyway!! tee hee)

Now it's time for you to take action!!  Create your card and share it to our monthly challenge by using the link below, and then continue hopping along to see the whole design team - we have some incredibly talented team members who are constantly inspiring me with their fabulous creations!!

        

And for the complete list of all the design team and their posts, you can use this link - and happy stamping until next week!!!  

For any supplies, shop here at http://www3.stampinup.com/ECWeb/default.aspx

Love and Affection Hello

It's cold and rainy here, but I thought I'd send you "a little hello" 

 - featuring Love and Affection and Banners and Badges!!  Enjoy!!

For any supplies, shop here at http://www3.stampinup.com/ECWeb/default.aspx

Stampin' Up! Everyday Occasions CTC#86

Hello!  And welcome back to our Sunday Night Blog Hop - and this week, we will inspire you with ideas and creations inspired by the Everyday Occasions Chapter of the Catalogue - pages 66-91 - there is so much inspiration in this chapter - in fact, there is so much that we will be exploring this chapter again in the weeks to come!!

I've been inspired by the very first page of the chapter!! This card is a CASE (Copy and Selectively Edit) of the card on the top right of page 67 - and it's very similar actually.  I've kept to the same colour scheme, and changed the stamp set to Mixed Borders - which really works a treat with this design.  Because the stamp is photopolymer, it's super easy to line up all the images, and the nature of the images in the Mixed Borders set is that the central image is blank and perfectly lined up for the greeting banner!!  How cool is that!!

And now it's time to keep on hopping around the whole design team - we have some new team members this week which is super exciting!!  You'll love their fabulous contributions I'm sure!!

And when you've hopped your way all around our blog hop, head to your craft table and get creating too!!   You can link your own wonderful creations once you've added to your blog.  It's so easy when you use the link below!  We look forward to seeing your lovely work!

And for the complete list of the design team, head on over to our blog using this lovely link!!

For any supplies, shop here at http://www3.stampinup.com/ECWeb/default.aspx

Stampin' Up! Touches of Texture for SUO Delight in Nature

We are sharing our Delight in Nature this week on SUO Challenges - and what an amazing array of choices you can make to show your delight in nature!!

I looked through ALL of my huge array of floral images and really found it very difficult to narrow my decision!!

When I was creating this card I actually made 4 cards - all with flowers and various arrangements of watercolouring.  Eventually, I asked my youngest daughter which was her favourite and she chose this little card featuring Touches of Texture.  This is an amazing stamp set with lots of lovely images and background pieces and we decided my image with the dragonfly and bee with the bunch of flowers was MORE Delight in Nature than a single floral image.  

So, make sure you ink up your nature images and join in the fun with our great theme challenge - Delight in Nature and link your post back to our challenge blog using the link above.

And we'll see you next time for some great inspiration at Stampin' Up Only Challenges.  

For any supplies, shop here at http://www3.stampinup.com/ECWeb/default.aspx

Stampin' Up! Foxy Friends for CTC#85 - Babies and Kids

Hello and Welcome back to our Sunday Night Blog Hop where we are Caseing the Catalogue - chapter by chapter and sharing our ideas with you for your inspiration and creativity!!  Enjoy!! 

This week we are Caseing the Babies and Kids chapter of the Catalogue - pages 56 - 65

And of course, I HAD to use this little foxy fellow and the corresponding punch - just so so cute!!!

I have actually CASED the project on page 61 of the little teddy on the gift bag, but I've used my new favourite cutesy set Foxy Friends.  

The embellishment cluster is quite similar to the project - I've made the tag and added the button and ribbon detail with the linen thread loop - what a cool idea!!

I've used one of the lovely stamps from the Foxy Friends stamp set instead of the doily detail, and I've swapped the foxy for the teddy bear.  My greeting comes from the Greatest Greetings stamp set, and I've also used the lovely hardwood stamp for the background. 

 (The truth about the background stamp, is that the hardwood stamped card was on my desk stamped but I'd not finished my original idea for the card - and so, when I was putting together my little cluster of elements for my foxy friend card, on it all went - and easy peasy, my card was done!!  Love it when a plan comes together!!)

Now if you've been inspired, throw together your lovely creation and enter it into our monthly challenge - we love to see how some ideas are inspired and created!!

Time to keep on hopping, and see all the fabulous, amazing and inspirational projects we have to share with you this week from the Babies and Kids chapter - you'll love it all I'm sure!!

And for the complete list of all the design team, simply click here to go back to our blog and see the links for all of our projects!!

For any supplies, shop here at http://www3.stampinup.com/ECWeb/default.aspx