Stampin' Up!'s Sheltering Tree

Good Morning.  

Whilst it's snowing outside, I had a quick side trip into the crafty space and made this card for Less is More.  It's the dreaded one layer week and the theme is New Beginnings. 

I've used another newbie from the spring/summer catalogue - Sheltering Tree.  This set has loads of options.  There's the bike, a rake, a swing, blossom, leaves and four sentiments to go with them.  You could do a seasonal set of cards or just mix and match the elements. 

I've stamped the tree off the edge in Soft Suede.  The tree looks fantastic all bare but for the theme of new beginnings I added some Pistachio Pudding leaves on the ends.  They're my new buds.  And like a lot of people at this time of year the bike is for the start of new beginnings and a new exercise regime.  The bike is stamped in Basic Black and Real Red. The ground is stamped in Crumb Cake.  I added the sentiment in Real Red.  I used a Crumb Cake base for my card and I'm really pleased how the little scene has come together. 

I felt I should be adding touches of white to the tree in view of the scene outside! 

Hope it's warmer with you.  x 

Supplies Used

All Stampin' Up!

Sheltering Tree Photopolymer Stamp Set

£22.95

Crumb Cake A4 Card Stock

£6.25

Crumb Cake Classic Stampin' Pad

£4.95

Soft Suede Classic Stampin' Pad

£4.95

Pistachio Pudding Classic Stampin' Pad

£4.95

Real Red Classic Stampin' Pad

£4.95

Basic Black Classic Stampin' Pad

£4.95

Table by StampinBuddy. Try it FREE.

If you would like to order any of the above or the other supplies from the current catalogues then please get in touch either by e mail ails300@btinternet.com or call 07827923123.  I would be delighted to help you with your crafty projects.  A parcel of lovely goodies could be winging it's way direct to your home in the UK, Deutchsland, France, Nederland or Osterreich.

You can also order using the Shop Now button or by clicking on the items above. 

Kinda Eclectic Thinking of You

Have you had a Kinda Eclectic sort of day? 

Mine's was pretty much normal, tackled my mountain of ironing and reduced it to a hill.  Will it be a mountain again tomorrow or will I be able to briefly announce my ironing is up to date??!!

Let's talk about my card instead.  I love the this soft colour theme.  We have Perfect Plum as the card base and the small butterflies with a Whisper White panel.  Soft Sky for the leaves and Sahara Sand for the border and sentiment, which is from Four You.  Elegant Eggplant gives the larger butterfly a stronger pop of colour.  It's punched out with the Elegant Butterfly punch and I've added some Basic Rhinestones for that little bit of twinkle to the body.

This was fun to make and so quick and easy to put together.  I think you could use it for lots of occasions.  Mmmm but perhaps not Christmas and I am woefully low on Christmas cards.

Hope you are much more prepared than me!

How about an early Christmas present to yourself and become part of the Stampin' Up! family?  For one week, starting today, anyone joining will receive an extra 5% cash back bonus on their december commissionable sales.  But that's not all the starter kit has been reduced by 25%.  Now that is an early Christmas present for anyone who is thinking of joining!

Take care. xx

Supplies Used

All Stampin' Up!

Four You

£12.95

Four You

£9.95

Kinda Eclectic Wood-Mount Stamp Set

£24.95

Kinda Eclectic Clear-Mount Stamp Set

£17.95

Elegant Butterfly Punch

£14.25

Basic Rhinestones Jewel Accents

£4.50

Perfect Plum Classic Stampin' Pad

£4.95

Perfect Plum A4 Card Stock

£6.25

Elegant Eggplant Classic Stampin' Pad

£4.95

Whisper White A4 Card Stock

£7.50

Soft Sky Classic Stampin' Pad

£4.95

Sahara Sand Classic Stampin' Pad

£4.95

Table by StampinBuddy. Try it FREE.

If you would like to order any of the above or the other supplies from the current catalogues then please get in touch either by e mail ails300@btinternet.com or call 07827923123.  I would be delighted to help you with your crafty projects.  A parcel of lovely goodies could be winging it's way direct to your home in the UK, Deutchsland, France, Nederland or Osterreich.

You can also order using the Shop Now button or by clicking on the items above. 

A bit of a Stampin' Up! Wetlands Experiment

A bit of an experiment indeed!  Let me explain.  First of all if you are a regular reader you will know that I love to join in at Less is More and this week's challenge is use a Rubber Stamp with a desert option of water colouring. 

Using the rubber stamp is no problem but my experimentation came in with the water colouring.  Which stamp set to use?  Well if we are getting wet then Wetlands seemed appropriate.   

I took the image of the goose (is it a goose?  I'm not sure!) and coloured it with my Stampin' Write Markers then spritzed the stamp with water before stamping onto Whisper White.  I then spritzed the paper too letting the colours run.  I coloured the stamp again with the markers and over stamped the image.  I coloured the separate grasses stamp again with a marker and stamped around the bottom edges.  To give my bird some definition I used the nib end of my marker and went around it's outline.  I then cut some notches into the edges to distress it a little and attached it to a card stock mat.  It's attached to a Whisper White card base.  The sentiment is from the same stamp set, aren't the fonts fab?

My daughter is off on her Primary 7 trip today.  She was so excited about going as she has been looking forward to it for so long and can remember seeing her big brother off.  Each year the Primary 7's set off for Loch Insh in the Highlands and I think the younger ones always look forward to when it'll be their turn.  A week of water sports, Archery, Skiing (dry slope), mountain biking etc.  No wonder they are excited!  For me it was another milestone, my little girl is now a big girl and this is her turn! 

Bye for now from a sappy Mum!  x 

Supplies Used

All Stampin' Up!

Card - Whisper White, Elegant Eggplant

Stamp - Wetlands

Stampin' Write Marker - Elegant Eggplant, Night of Navy, Cajun Craze, Garden Green, Always Artichoke

If you would like to order any of the above or the other supplies from the current catalogues then please get in touch either by e mail ails300@btinternet.com or call 07827923123.  I would be delighted to help you with your crafty projects.  A parcel of lovely goodies could be winging it's way direct to your home in the UK, Deutchsland, France, Nederland or Osterreich.

Get in touch to be part of my next Stampers 6.  Enjoy receiving a parcel of lovely goodies each month with a little something from me.  It's a great way to build up you stash and to be hostess for one of the months without having to go to the trouble of a party.  Take a look at my Virtual Hostess page and drop me a line if you want more info or to put your name down. 

Lovely as a Tree peacefully green

A serenely green card today using Stampin' Up's Lovely as a Tree and Sweet Essentials.  

I've made a little scene stamping the background trees in Pear Pizzazz and the foreground pine in Garden Green.  A little sponging around the bottom in Pear Pizzazz helps the dreamy look.  I framed the scene with Basic Black and mounted onto a card blank of Pear Pizzazz.  I stamped in Pear Pizzazz then cut around the sentiment from Sweet Essentials. 

I'm going to add this into this weeks CASology which has a cue card of Camp.  I always think of trees when camping and lots of greenery.  Also Dynamic Duos which has the colours Garden Green and Pear Pizzazz.  

Today is your last day to grab your greetings at 25% off.  Sweet Essentials is one of those sets and has loads of fab sentiments to meet lots of occasions.  Give me a shout if you want one of these sets at a bargain price. 

It's lovely to get back into crafting on a regular basis.  I hope that you have been managing into your craft space even for a short while.  It's so therapeutic! 

xx

Supplies Used

All Stampin' Up!

Card - Pear Pizzazz, Basic Black, Whisper White

Ink - Pear Pizzazz, Garden Green

Stamp - Lovely as a Tree, Sweet Essentials

If you would like to order any of the above or the other supplies from the current catalogues then please get in touch either by e mail ails300@btinternet.com or call 07827923123.  I would be delighted to help you with your crafty projects.  A parcel of lovely goodies could be winging it's way direct to your home in the UK, Deutchsland, France, Nederland or Osterreich.  

French Foliage Thinking of You

Finally I'm here with a card for Less is More, later than I would have liked. 

Our challenge from the lovely Limettes is to include HARDWARE on your card.  Mines is in the form of this lovely Brushed Bronze button currently available in the Stampin' Up's Autumn/Winter catalogue.  I bought these buttons specifically for autumn cards and also scrapbook pages.  

I used my favourite leaves - French Foliage.  A little rolling and tapping in Cajun Craze, Always Artichoke and Riding Hood Red.  I stamped the sentiment from Sincere Salutations (now retired) in Riding Hood Red.  A little Linen Thread crossed through the button finishes it off.  Did you notice my card base?  It's the lovely Natural Ivory Card perfect to carry on the nature look. 

Hope your week is stress free.  Take care. x 

Supplies Used

All Stampin Up 

Card - Natural Ivory, Very Vanilla

Ink - Always Artichoke, Riding Hood Red, Cajun Craze

Stamp - French Foliage, Sincere Salutations (now retired)

Other - Linen Thread, Brushed Bronze Button

If you would like to order any of the above or the other supplies from the current catalogues then please get in touch either by e mail ails300@btinternet.com or call 07827923123.  I would be delighted to help you with your crafty projects.  A parcel of lovely goodies could be winging it's way direct to your home in the UK, Deutchsland, France, Nederland or Osterreich.  

Don't forget to take a look at our current promotions.  There's still time!! 

Fancy becoming a demonstrator and receiving your goodies at a discount, get in touch for more info and you could also receive a free pack of papers every month for 6 months!  

There's still time to take part in this fab promotion. 

Simply Soft Blossoms

Happy Saturday Everyone!   After all our sunny weather we now have a misty day.  Hopefully the sun will burn it off soon. 

Today is Less is More today on my crafting week.  It's a theme this week and we have been asked to choose 3 past challenges.  For my card I have gone all the way back to the beginning with 

1. Pink Black White - Week 1

2. Spring - Week 3

and then more recent, a favourite sketch

3. Sketch 4 - Week 52

As I can see the blossom starting to come up on our tree I decided to use this as my focal point.  I've used Simply Soft which is a hostess set.  Firstly I stamped it in Versamark and heat embossed with Black Embossing Powder.  Then stamped it again in Black Staz On and a third time but stamping off first.  I coloured my blossoms with my Stampin' Write Markers.  The background blossoms are Pink Pirouette, the middle Pretty in Pink and the foreground in Rose Red (which really looks a deep pink rather than red).  I added some Pretty in Pink 5/8" Grosgrain Ribbon along the bottom and attached it to a Melon Mambo mat.  

The sentiment is from Teeny Tiny Wishes and is stamped in Rose Red then punched out using the Word Window Punch.  It's attached to a Modern Label Punch in Melon Mambo.

Only 2 places left in my Stampers 6 starting in April.  This is an excellant way to go through your wish list and spread out the cost.  Perhaps you would like to build up your markers, ink collection or stamp sets?  You will also have the opportunity to be a hostess and you could use your hostess pounds to purchase this lovely stamp set I've used today.  If this appeals then drop me an e mail on ails300@btinternet.com. 

Supplies Used

All Stampin' Up! 

Card - Basic Black, Whisper White, Melon Mambo

Ink - Versamark, Rose Red, Staz on

Stamp - Simply Soft, Teeny Tiny Wishes

Punch - Word Window, Modern Label

Other - Stampin' Write markers, Black Embossing Powder

If you would like to order any of the above or the other supplies from the current catalogues then please get in touch either by e mail ails300@btinternet.com or call 07827923123.  I would be delighted to help you with your crafty projects.  Oh and don't forget to let me know which one of the free sets from Sale-A-Bration that you would like if your order reaches £45.

Last week!! x

Gold, Silver and ..... Dimensionals!!

This weeks challenge at less is more is metallic.  Mmmm so I really only have gold or silver embossing powder which would fit the bill.

My first card above was using some spares that I'd embossed a while ago in gold just to see what they would look like.  The tree from Season of Joy and the bird from Punch Potpourri.  I added some leaves, also spares, from the 2 step Bird Punch and popped my gold bird onto Dimensionals.  I embossed my sentiment from Occasional Greetings in gold.  (This set is currently reduced from £30.95 down to an amazing £18.57!  If you haven't already done so you can check out the retiral list on my side bar)

So, showed my hubby this morning and he was "it's OK but not wow".  "Metallic should be something with metal", he said.  Mmmm back to the drawing board, of course the Motorbike stamp sprang to mind but firstly out of rebellion I embossed in gold something definitely not metal.  The leaves form Lovely as a Tree.  And here is the card -

I liked all the intricate designs on this stamp and it embossed really well.  Of course gold fits into Autumnal which we are experiencing up here.  I cut round the leaves and before popping onto Dimensionals, I stamped the same leaf pattern in Versamark straight onto the card blank.  I then stamped my sentiment from Occasional Quotes in Old Olive.  Here's a close up of the leaves -

My last card is the Motorbike, all shiny metal!  I've stamped this before with silver embossing powder and it is wow.  This time I decided to highlight the different metal parts of the bike so stamped and embossed it twice.  Then cut up the parts I wanted.  I coloured a little red onto it using my Real Red Stampin' Write Marker and added Crystal Effects to give some shine.  They were mounted onto Basic Black and each panel popped up on some dimensionals.  On this photo I tried to show the shine -

The sentiment from Occasional Quotes was stamped in Basic Black. 

Hubby approved of this one but why wasn't each part in a line to make up the bike?  Sigh!  Do tell what you think.  I'd be really interested in your opinion.

Thanks for looking through this post, if you would like any of these supplies or anything from the sales list give me a shout on ails300@btinternet.com.  I'd be happy to help.  I still have 4 places left for my Stampers 6 starting in October when the new catalogue becomes available. There's loads of lovely new goodies in it! x

Supply List
All Stampin' Up! supplies unless otherwise stated

Card - Real Red, Old Olive, Basic Black, Whisper White
Ink - Basic Black, Old Olive, Versamark
Stamps - Season of Joy, Punch Potpourri, Occasional Greetings, Occasional Quotes, Lovely as a Tree, Motorcycle
Punch - 2 step Bird
Other - Dimensionals, Crystal Effects, Real Red Stampin' Write Marker

Lovely as a Tree Thinking of You

Here's my card for CASual Fridays challenge which has joined with Clean and Simple Stamping.  Two challenges in one! This is the sketch we were given to follow - 

For my card I've gone with a Crumb Cake card base and teamed it with some Perfect Plum and attached a Whisper White panel.  The tree is from Lovely as a Tree and is stamped in Elegant Eggplant.  I sponged some Perfect Plum and Elegant Eggplant across the bottom and carried it over the card base.  The sentiment "Thinking of You" is from another stamp set Silhouette Sentiments.  I punched it out with the Word Window Punch then re inserted one end back into the punch to make it shorter.  This is layered onto Perfect Plum punched out with the Modern Label Extra-Large Punch. 

I had a lovely fun day with some close friends who are truly bitten by the crafting bug.  We are all learning together and passing on skills to each other whilst having a laugh.  It also kept me occupied so I was not thinking of my (or rather worrying about) my eldest who started secondary school today!  

If you would like any of the supplies featured in the above card then you can contact me on ails300@btinternet.com.

Thanks for looking. x 

Supplies Used

All Stampin' Up! unless otherwise stated

Card:  Crumb Cake, Perfect Plum, Whisper White

Ink: Elegant Eggplant, Perfect Plum

Stamps: Lovely as a Tree, Silhouette Sentiments

Punches: Modern Label Extra Large, Word Window

Other: Sponge Daubers

Medallion Strength

Something a little different today.  I wanted to have a play at layering images and really had no plan in mind so just went for it.

I stamped the large Medallion in Old Olive (I used my Brayer to apply the ink directly onto the stamp) and stamped off the edge of some Whisper White.  Then cut a rough mask to cover it.  Then I stamped the words from Strength & Hope in Pear Pizzazz, sometimes stamping off the page first.  I decided to use the Rock and Roll technique on the butterfly.  It was stamped in Pretty in Pink then rolled in Night of Navy.  The scroll, in Pear Pizzazz, was used to fill in the rest.  I then lightly sponged in some of the areas with Pear Pizzazz and Pretty in Pink using my Sponge Daubers.   The center panel was mounted onto Night of Navy before attaching to a rectangle of Old Olive which in turn was attached to the Pear Pizzazz card base.

Finally I stamped the H in Old Olive and punched out using the 1 1/4" circle punch and matted it onto Night of Navy punched using the 1 3/8" circle punch.

It's fun just to have a play sometimes and see where it leads you.  Have a go!

Supplies required
All Stampin' Up! unless otherwise stated

Card:  Old Olive, Pear Pizzazz, Night of Navy
Ink: Pretty in Pink, Night of Navy, Old Olive, Pear Pizzazz
Stamps: Medallion, Strength & Hope
Punches: 1 1/4" circle punch, 1 3/8" circle punch
Other: Sponge Daubers

If you'd like to purchase any of these supplies then please e mail me on ails300@btinternet.com, I'd be happy to help.