JAI colour challenge

Card: whisper white, daffodil delight, so saffron
Ink: daffodil delight marker
Accessories: beautiful wings embosslit, big shot, petals-a-plenty embossing folder, pearls

When I saw the JAI challenge for this week, I wanted to enter something even though I almost don't have any whisper white cardstock in my stash right now!  A problem when the challenge is to just add daffodil delight, so saffron and whisper white!  I only had a small butterfly in so saffron, too, which made this challenge quite the challenge!  It there, even if you it's had to spot!

This is my take on the challenge, and it's a small 3" card that I have embossed.  I decided to add the rest of the butterflies with a pearl inside.  I used my marker to bring out the flower stamens, so there is no actual stamping on this project, either.  I think it has a fresh, spring feel, which I'm needing right now :-)

Mainly music gift

Card: confetti white, blushing bride, pear pizzazz, very vanilla
Ink: blushing bride, pear pizzazz
Stamp set: mixed bunch
Accessories: petals-a-plenty embossing folder, big shot, blossom punch, pearl, vellum

Someone at my church asked me last Sunday if I would do a wee card for the Mainly Music Mothers for Mother's Day...  Didn't have much time, but with some help (yes, I enlisted the help of my sister!) I made 30 of these wee cards.  There is a scripture verse inside, which I printed off in vellum.  I was pretty happy when I had decided on the designed as I was then able to prep them all, and I've just managed to finish them!  It's been a small labour of love, and I hope the mothers will treasure the verse that is included.

I used the rock 'n' roll technique to stamp the blossom, then added some layers, with one layer being embossed.  The blossom centre just lifts it, with the pearl.

French foliage frenzy!

Card: more mustard, cajin craze, old olive, whisper white
Ink: more mustard, cajin craze, old olive, marina mist, chocolate chip
Stamp set: french foliage
Accessories: linen thread, square lattice embossing folder, big shot

I decided to ink up my french foliage stamp set today as it hasn't seen in any ink in awhile...!  I went online to CASE a card using this stamp set, and found this one.  I've changed it up a little, but it is largely completely CASE'd.  I don't have baja breeze ink, but I used marina mist instead and I love the touch of blue here, which I hadn't thought to use with the earthy, regal tones.  I have used the 'rock n roll' technique to add splashes of colour, and I have fussy-cut two leaves to tie with linen thread.  Hope you like today's project!

Happiest birthday

Card: crumb cake, calypso coral, pear pizzazz, very vanilla
Ink: pear pizzazz, early expresso
Stamp set: apothecary art
Accessories: vintage wallpaper embossing folder, big shot, labels collection framelit, very vanilla velvet ribbon, beautiful wings embosslit, pearls

At Stamp Camp last month, I was playing with the new framelits and the stunning apothecary art stamp set - all in the new mini!  I had bits of this project ready to go, but I pulled this all together this morning...  I love the velvet ribbon and the framelits, and you can do all sorts of watercolour or blending with the stamp set.  This project has an elegant, antique feel which I'm loving.

Polished stone project

Card: wisteria wonder, river rock, concord crush, glossy whisper white

Ink: concord crush

Reinkers: river rock, wisteria wonder, bashful blue, crumb cake

Stamp set(s): zoo review, under the big top

Accessories: framped tulips embossing folder, big shot, decorative label punch, word window punch, cotton ball, rubbing alcohol, gold brad

At stamp camp, we learned the polish stone technique with this card, and how to resize the tulip frame embossing folder. Very cool. The lovely and very inspiring Heather taught us, and I reckon I'll be using both of these technqiues again - thanks Heather!

Card tin

Card: poppy parade, whisper white

Ink: blushing bride

Stamp set: just believe

Accessories: beautiful wings embosslit, big shot, lattice embossing folder, poppy parade stitched-poly ribbon, real red striped ribbon, rhinestones

For christmas last year (I know, it's been awhile!), I put together a card tin for my mother and sister. I've posted about the tin I gave my mother, but this is the one I gave my sister. I managed to fill it with a few cards for Christmas which I'll show you over time...perhaps when I don't have anything to post! The tin is a Dilmah promotional tin, which I bought from Countdown just before Christmas. The perfect size for cards... I blinged it up with ribbon and rhinestones, but not too much as to make it annoying to pack away etc.

Anyway, my sister loved this gift, and she's even used some of the cards that were included already - yay! (but not before I took pics!). This means that she can go to her stash and decide on a card without asking me to make one for her :-) I'm thinking I could continue the tradition of giving her a stack of card for Christmas (and maybe birthday) each year to keep the tin supplied. The gift that keeps on giving!

Colour throwdown #177

Card: melon mamblo, whisper white, basic black
Stamp set(s): delicate doilies, well scripted
Accessories: versamark, white embossing powder, embossing buddy, heat gun, beautiful wings embosslit, big shot, pearl

There is a stunning colour challenge over at Colour Throwdown this week. Melon mambo, black, and white. Gorgeous! For my entry, I white embossed my images on basic black card, added a melon mambo butterfly with a little white butterfly to add depth, and the pearl on the butterfly just adds that 'little extra something'. I don't usually like using black, but seeing the way the white embossing looks against the black, I'm thinking my white embossing powder will have to come out more often!

Farewell gift

Card: cherry cobbler, blushing bride, whisper white

Ink: cherry cobbler, blushing bride

Stamp sets: strength and hope, because I care, so happy for you

Accessories: brayer, sponge, white embossing powder, versamark, heat gun, cherry cobbler 1/2" scallop dots ribbon, scallop trim border punch, candle, tissue paper, whisper white organza ribbon, pearls

My sister wanted to create a farewell gift for a work colleague, so I helped her decorate a candle and make an easel card. It was lots of fun to create with her, and it looked she was enjoying the process of making something beautiful. I've had word that the recipient loved it!

Beautiful Blue!

Card: concord crush, marina mist
Ink: concord crusth, marina mist marker
Stamp set: punch bunch
DSP: concord crush, in colour pattern stack
Other: 1/2" stitched-poly ribbon - concord crush, square lattice embossing folder, big shot, scallop trim border punch, beautiful wings embosslit, rhinestone

I pulled this card together for a sketch challenge recently, but I was too late to upload it, so I decided to keep it for a time when there's not much happening on my blog...!

I'm loving concord crush and marina mist as a colour combination - I know I go on about loving different colour combos, but that's just what my passion is right now :-) I'm also loving the texture on the embossed DSP - yes, I've embossed DSP! You'll have to take it from me that it looks pretty amazing in real life!

JAI Colour Challenge

Card: crumb cake, pool party, calypso coral, whisper white
Ink: calypso coral, pool party
Stamp set: pocket sillouttes
Other: brayer, perfect polka dots embossing folder, big shot, beautiful wings embosslit

The challenge at JAI this week was a colour challenge, using two of the new In Colours this year. I'm loving the calypso coral and pool party together! They just come alive when you team them up with crumb cake and/or whisper white.

I've used my brayer here, which hasn't seen ink for a wee while... And the embossing creates an elegant, soft background for the brayered art work. Butterflies are definitely "in" right now, so I couldn't resist a few to accent the scene. Check out the other projects that have been posted for this challenge for even more inspiration!

Thinking of you

Card: old olive, rich razzleberry, marina mist, whisper white

Ink: old olive, marina mist marker

Stamp set: so happy for you

Other: 1/4" satin rich razzleberry ribbon, vintage wallpaper embossing folder, big shot

A few months ago, a friend of mine had a workplace accident, sustained a head injury, and had surgery... She was in hospital for about a week, but I thought she could do with some cheering up. I had put this card together for my sample board, but felt it was for her, so I sent it along with some folks that were visiting her. She loved it, even though she couldn't really see much as her glasses got broken and she had lots of swelling...

At first, I was unsure about the marina mist with the old olive and rich razzleberry, but I love how this has turned out! Some fussy-cutting and embossing to give it some texture, and viola! I can't remember if I've CASED this from somewhere/someone, but I love the design and I think I'll be using it again...

It's all about Christmas!

Card: old olive, real red, very vanilla

Stamp set: seasons of joy

Ink: old olive, real red

Other: vintage wallpaper embossing folder, big shot, decorative label punch, 1 1/4" striped grosgrain ribbon (real red), 5/8" grosgrain ribbon (real red), rhinestones, sponge

Over at Craft Room Challenge, the current challenge was anything Christmas. I love Christmas, and couldn't resist playing along!

I have embossed the background panel, fussy-cut my tree, cut and frayed my striped ribbon, and added some rhinestones for some bling. Not my most favourite project, but I love the effect of the frayed ribbon (learnt that trick at the recent Day Out in Auckland...). Another card to add to my growing pile of Christmas cards - yay!

Sketch challenge

Card: poppy parade, blushing bride, whisper white
Ink: poppy parade
Stamp set: punch bunch
DSP: In colour paper patterns pack (poppy parade)
Other: 1/2" stitched-poly ribbion (poppy parade), perfect polka dots embossing folder, big shot, 1-3/4" scallop ciricle punch, pearl

Over at Try Stampin' On Tuesday, they have a sketch challenge this week. I pulled this card together pretty quickly using some of my favourite colours - poppy parade and blushing bride. This is a slightly different shape than what I usually use, so it was fun to give this challenge a go!

This is quite a simple card to demo or use in a workshop, so I'm going to be keeping the sketch idea for my next workshop.

JAI sketch challenge

Card: island indigo, pool party, calypso coral, whisper white
Ink: calypso coral
Stamp set: bliss, pocket sillouttes
Other: linen thread, perfect polka dots embossing folder, beautiful wings embosslit, sweet buttons embosslit, big shot, scallop trim border punch, scallop ciricle punch, sponge

Here is my take on this weeks JAI Challenge - a sketch. Follow the link to see what the amazing design team dreamed up this week! I found it quite hard to bring this card together by only using the materials and tools I have from Stampin' Up! but it proves it can be done...after all, I am creative!

Loving the new In Colours - these are my favourite! The island indigo and calypso coral work so well together. I sponged the whisper white and the scallop circle punch with calypso coral to highlight the edges and to give a bit of a shabby look. I used a button from the sweet button embosslit (gotta love this cute embosslit when you don't have buttons!) and wound linen thread around the middle of the biggest butterfly for some detail and texture.

Try stamping on Tuesday challenge no.30

Card: daffodil delight, whisper white, melon mambo DSP
Stamp set: punch bunch
Other: daffodil delight marker, icecream parlor ribbon, icecream parlor buttons, 1 3/4" scallop circle punch, perfect polka dot embossing folder, big shot

Over at Try Stampin' on Tuesday this week, there was a sketch challenge that I had to try out. I had a hard time working out my colour combo, but decided on daffodil delight and melon mambo to go with the icecream parlor ribbon. Problem was, I only had a marker in daffodil delight as my ink base to work with...but we got there, with a fun result! I think this card looks cherry, clean & simple, and altogether fun!

So pretty in pink!

Card: crumb cake, blushing bride, whisper white
DSP: in colour stack - blushing bride
Ink: blushing bride
Stamps: cottage garden
Other: linen thread, dazzling diamonds, perfect polka dots embossing folder, big shot

I decided to have a go at this week's JAI challenge - a sketch! I had fun deciding on the colour combo and the flower stamp, but couldn't decide how to interpret the sketch. I ended up CASEing the sketch almost directly...

I love the perfect polka dot embossing, the delicate feel of the dsp, and of course, the dazzling diamonds on the flower. I think this card looks very feminine and elegant. I have included a panel inside the card with a sentiment and I'm hoping I'll be able to pass it on when the occassion arises.

It's all about chocolate!

Card: blushing bride, early expresso, very vanila
Ink: early expresso
Stamp: eat chocolate (mini)
Other: early expresso 1-1/4" striped grosgrain ribbon, perfect polka dots embossing folder, square lattice embossing folder, big shot, dazzling daimonds, decorative label punch

I finally had to order the Eat Chocolate stamp set (from the current mini catalogue), with the decorative label punch, and it arrived just the other day. Of course, I had to ink up one of the stamps... Love the brown and pink combo here - it's becoming a firm favourite of mine! There is dazzling diamonds on top of the cupcakes, but this hasn't come out to well in the photo, but the sparkle is definitely there!

There are only 17 days left to order from the current mini catalogue (see the link on the right), including this stamp set, so contact me to order yours today! And if you spend $120, you will also receive a free ribbon and button bundle (see the details link on the right).

Birthday card

Card: blushing bride, poppy parade, whisper white, poppy parade DSP
Ink: poppy parade, blushing bride
Stamps: create a cupcake
Ribbon: poppy parade 1/2"stitched-poly ribbon
Other: big shot, perfect polka dots embossing folder, square lattice embossing folder, dazzling diamonds

I decided to enter this week's JAI challenge - a sketch! I embossed DSP, gave my big shot quite a work-out, and just had to add some dazzling diamonds... What do you think?

I know I'm using my favourite colour combo here - again! - but I had fun with this, and love the texture of the embossing. The sketch was pretty simple, but for this card, I think less is more. It was the first time I had imbossed DSP, and I quite like the result - I'm pretty sure I'll have to try this again sometime :-)

Thank you cards

The other night I made some thank you cards... You can never have enough on hand! My new favourite colour combo is Crumb Cake, Very Vanilla, Chocolate Chip and Blushing Bride.

Card: crumb cake, very vanilla, chocolate chip, blushing bride
Ink: chocolate chip
Stamps: pocket sillouttes
Other: pearls, perfect polka dots embossing folder, beautiful wings embosslits, big shot

Really easy to make, and the texture of the embossing just finishes these wee cards. I've run my fingernail around the very vanilla panels to distress the edges, but I know Stampin Up! sell the Cutter Kit that includes a distressing tool... All great fun!

Fun with my brayer

I decided to have a play with my brayer, and loved the results:


Card: pear pizzazz, whisper white
Ink: pear pizzazz
Stamps: Cottage garden
DSP: pear pizzazz
Other: big shot, textured impressions embossing folder, brayer, pearls, scallop trim border punch

I brayered the embossing folder and then embossed whisper white card to get the really cool effect on top of the DSP. I also brayered the main artwork, and stamped the flower. I punched a border on the DSP at the bottom (you can't see it particularly well), and then I stamped the sentiment and layered it on pear pizzazz card. The pearls add the finishing touch.

I was going to enter this into a challenge for JAI, but I didn't have the rest of the colours for this week's challenge... Had lots of fun with it, though!

If you would like to learn how to brayer, contact me, and book a workshop and I can show you how!