This month Stampin’ Up!s #simplestamping challenge was to create a thank you card using only stamps, ink, paper and punches. When thinking of which stamp set to use for this challenge I decided to go with the Beauty Abounds cling stamp set. I love butterflies so I create with this stamp set whenever I can, but I also like this one because of the number of different images in this set and because it can create nice effects on your projects simply by stamping!

Colour wise I was initially thinking of doing something with purples and greens (a favourite colour combo of mine), but once I got to pulling out supplies my inkspiration was pulled towards Pool Party and Pretty Peacock (one of the newest In Colours).

For the card base I used Pretty Peacock cardstock and then Pool Party cardstock for the card mat. I stamped the phrase and images on Very Vanilla cardstock. For the “thanks” and smaller bubbles I used Pretty Peacock ink and for the butterflies and larger bubbles I used Pool Party ink.

Then to tie in with all the stamped bubbles I used the 2 1/4″ Circle Punch to punch out the phrase and butterflies as well as another piece of Pretty Peacock cardstock.

Things didn’t stop there though… I also created a more simple version without using a punch (just stamps, ink and paper, on the left) as well as a stepped up version (on the right).

To step up this card even more I used the Stitched Shapes dies to cut out the phrase as well as to create a Pretty Peacock border behind it. I popped these squares up using Stampin’ Dimensionals and then added a little bit of bling with a few Rhinestone Basic Jewels. I thought of also adding some Silver Metallic Thread, but I didn’t have any in my craft stash 🙁   (I will have to fix that asap!).

When thinking of Christmas/Holiday colours there’s the standard red, green and gold or sometimes you’ll see blue and silver. I’ve seen some interesting combinations when people have created cards using unconventional colours and for this week’s project this combination is a favourite of mine!

I used Smoky Slate cardstock for my card base and Mint Macaron cardstock for the card mat. I stamped on Whisper White cardstock using the First Frost cling stamp set. For the leaves and buds I used Mint Macaron ink and stamped off first for the leaves before stamping on the Whisper White card front. Then I embossed the card front using the Softly Falling Textured Impressions Embossing Folder.

For the phrase I stamped in Versamark ink and then heat embossed Silver Stampin’ Emboss Powder. I then used the Delightful Tag Topper Punch and popped it up using Stampin’ Dimensionals. I also stamped 3 flowers with Smoky Slate ink which I then cut out and used some Puff Paint in the centre of the flowers. The Heat Tool helped raise and set the Puff Paint nicely and I like how the Rhinestone Basic Jewels add a little something extra but also pull in the silver from the embossing powder.

Over the next few weeks there are not going to be as many project sheets here on the blog as there’s a lot going on right now. I’m in the midst of putting together my oldest’s 10th birthday party (how did that happen?!) and my 12 Weeks of Christmas has started. This is something just for my email subscribers and offers ideas for cards, tags, gift wrap and more. If you would like to join my mailing list and get in on my 12 Weeks of Christmas simply send me your information (Contact Me).

For those of us in Canada this coming weekend is Thanksgiving. A time to share what you are grateful/thankful for, get together with those you love and of course eat way too much food! And just like many of you whenever we go over to someone’s house for Thanksgiving dinner we always bring something with us as a thank you (usually a bottle of wine). I also add a little something extra like a card or a tag for the bottle.

In the past I’ve used stamp sets from the Annual Catalogue, but this past August’s Paper Pumpkin kit, A Gift of Love, was perfect! The kit itself helps you create 8 gift bags and here are the two projects that came straight from the kit instructions.

I also used the same stamp set and embellishments to make some tags that could then be attached to a bottle of wine or a gift bag. I only added some Crushed Curry and Very Vanilla cardstock (though you could easily use one of the tags from the kit and flip it over) as well I used the Delightful Tag Topper Punch.

In terms of cards, Stampin’ Up! made it super easy with the add on bundle that included 24 card bases and envelopes. I had a lot of fun using the embellishments from the Gift of Love kit to create these cards. The two on the right I designed for those who attended my World Card Making Day event this past weekend.

I still have some supplies left so we’ll see what other inkspiration pops into my head!

Hopefully our family will enjoy the cards and tags when we see them this weekend and hopefully I don’t stuff myself TOO much. I hope you and your family have a Happy Thanksgiving whether you are celebrating this weekend or next month!

So what is World Card Making Day anyway?! It’s a day to celebrate the making of hand made cards of course! Store bought cards just don’t have the same feeling behind them and World Card Making Day reminds us that the best gifts come from the heart, and the hands of the people we love.

World Card Making Day started out as just something special for subscribers to Paper Crafts magazine back in October 2006, but it was so popular that it became a holiday for all card makers after that.

So where did greeting cards come from?! The greeting card as we know it actually came from ancient China as a way to celebrate the Chinese New Year. Then around the 15th century Europe started to give greeting cards as well for all different kinds of occasions; birthdays, thank yous, Christmas, special occasions, etc.

No matter what you use them for, cards are a great way to let someone know that you’re thinking about them. And what better way to celebrate World Card Making Day by making a card for someone you know, even if it’s just because!

 

Happy World Card Making Day everyone!!

I was running low on thank you cards which is something I use a lot of, as I’m sure you can imagine, and so I needed to make some more. I really like how these turned out so I thought I would share them with you all.

The idea for this batch of cards came from a set I just recently picked up. It’s Magnolia Blooms and comes from the Beginners Brochure which is like it’s own separate Stampin’ Up! catalogue for those just starting out and has some great stamp sets and kits that you can’t find in any of their other catalogues.

Beginner Brochure

So with this being the stamp set, I of course was wanting to incorporate the Magnolia Lane DSP, which I’m still loving so much! I also decided to keep this card clean and simple and used Whisper White cardstock for my card base.

I stamped “thank you” in Mossy Meadow to draw from the colours in the DSP and for the magnolia bloom I stamped in Tuxedo Black Memento ink. The reason behind the switch in ink colour was because I wanted to colour the image using the Watercolour Pencils (assortment 2). Although neither pack has Petal Pink or Mossy Meadow, I really like how the Flirty Flamingo and Garden Green worked out.

To highlight the DSP and stamped image/phrase even more I used two of the circles from the Stitched Shapes dies. Then to finish it off I added a few Pearl Basic Jewels.

Make sure to check out the project sheet for the full list of supplies and step by step instructions.

2019 Magnolia Thank You Project Sheet

Things have been pretty busy lately and so it’s been a while since I participated in a sketch challenge. Now with things settling down a little bit I thought I’d join this week’s Paper Craft Crew Challenge. This week’s challenge was a vertical sketch challenge and had a few different elements to incorporate.

In terms of the colours for this challenge I decided to use Flirty Flamingo cardstock as my base along with Whisper White cardstock for most of my stamping. Flirty Flamingo was the main ink colour I used for this project, but I also added some Crumb Cake ink onto some Crumb Cake cardstock for a tone on tone effect. For the phrase I used one from the Strong & Beautiful cling stamp set and stamped it using Tuxedo Black Memento ink. The other stamp set I used for this project was the Butterfly Wishes cling stamp set.

I also used the Stitched Shapes Dies to create the oval and circle shapes for this challenge. For the other elements I used 1/4″ Copper Trim, which is what sparked the colour combinations for this project, and a few Rhinestone Basic Jewels.

This project definitely took me outside of my usual creative box so I’d love to hear what you think about this project!

If you’d like to check out the other projects for this week’s Paper Craft Crew Challenge head over to their website…

papercraftcrew.com/pcc352

I really enjoy the fall season… the leaves changing colour, apple and pumpkin picking with my two munchkins and the smell of hot mulled apple cider! And since I got the Harvest Hellos cling stamp set I’ve been having a lot of fun creating different projects and been thinking more and more about fall.

For this card I decided to use a few different elements all with the idea of fall and the outdoors. In terms of colours, I chose Crushed Curry and Terracotta Tile because they remind me of the colours we’ll be seeing on the trees soon. I also used Terracotta Tile cardstock and ink as well as the Apple Builder Punch for the pumpkin. There is a little bit of Crumb Cake cardstock for the stem of the pumpkin and Crumb Cake ink for the vines; a nice neutral colour which naturally lends itself well to this card.

To bring in the outdoors even more I used the Pinewood Planks 3D Embossing Folder for the card mat. I also decided to create a simple watercolour background to feature those rich fall colours some more. To make it I just used an Aqua Painter to brush Terracotta Tile and Crushed Curry across a piece of Fluid 100 Watercolour Paper. I tried to blend the two together in the middle so the change in colour was gradual and I think it turned out really well! Then I framed this piece with some Whisper White cardstock that I cut out using two of the square Stitched Shapes Dies.

For everything you need to recreate this card download the project sheet, complete with a supplies list and step by step instructions.

2019 Give Thanks Project Sheet

Many moons ago, before I had my two munchkins, I participated in a crop for the cure event that was looking to raise funds for breast cancer. It was a 24 hour crop til you drop event, although my friend and I opted to get a little shut eye part way through over at her place which wasn’t far from the venue. This was a great chance to spread out your supplies and really dive deep into your scrapbooks or whatever other projects people decided to bring with them. At that time I was spending more of my time scrapbooking than cardmaking… that happens when you don’t have two munchkins always calling for you ;P

Nowadays it’s more cardmaking than scrapbooking and while I absolutely love making cards and other papercrafts and sharing all of that with you, I do miss scrapbooking! It’s a great way to be creative and at the same time you get the chance to reminisce about the memories you’re putting on the pages. I would usually spread out my supplies so that I could see or easily get to whatever sparked my inkspiration for that particular photo or page, so these crop for the cure events are great because you get a half a table just for you and your supplies.

This weekend I will be at another crop for the cure event, but this time it’s not 24 hours and I will be there as a vendor not a participant. I think this is why recently I’ve been thinking more and more of needing to start scrapbooking more often. I’m so excited to be a part of this event and can’t wait to meet new creative people!

There’s so much going on, even if you’re not cropping the day away and all of the funds raised as part of this event will go towards Neuroblastoma research at the Hospital for Sick Children.

For more information and to find out how you can come and say hi head over to…

kathrynskrop4akure.ca

Fall is just around the corner and I’m starting to get into it. I’ve always loved the colours of the season and then there’s the chance to get together with family and get a lot of candy!! (who doesn’t love that?!) I think it’s coming through in my crafting because I’ve been having different ideas featuring the Harvest Hellos cling stamp set.

For this week’s card I decided to pull from the colours of the upcoming season. Basic Black worked great with the Grapefruit Grove cardstock and really helped it pop. I also wanted to try and create a kind of Designer Series Paper for the background using the pumpkin and leaf. The leaves I simply stamped using Grapefruit Grove ink to give a tone on tone look. For the pumpkins I started by stamping in Tuxedo Black Memento ink and then once dry stamped the pumpkins again using Versamark ink so that I could sprinkle Dazzling Diamonds Stampin’ Glitter on top and give this card a little bling.

The phrase also comes from Harvest Hellos and I thought this one would be cute to use with the pumpkins in the background. For a little extra accent I stamped some vines in the corners using Crumb Cake, added a Rhinestone Basic Jewel and popped it up using some Stampin’ Dimensionals (I use these on almost all of my projects, they’re such a great and simple way to add an extra layer of depth).

Here’s the project sheet with all the supplies and step by step instructions you’ll need to create this for yourself. Enjoy!

2019 Harvest Sparkle Pumpkin Project Sheet

We got big into making shrinking dinks yesterday in my house as my two munchkins had a PA day. We used some different inks for our creations so I thought I would share what we discovered with all of you!

For the most part we used the Jet Black Stazon ink pad as it is a permanent ink and dries quickly. Also because of the nature of the surface we were stamping on (plastic shrinky dink sheets) this is a great option. A few months ago when I stamped on a mug at a team meeting we also used Stazon ink.

Tuxedo Black Memento ink is another option that could possibly work and while it would have been easier to wipe off when we made mistakes it would have easily smudged. As I found was the case when I experimented with some of the Classic Ink pads to attempt to give a few of the images some colour.

Unfortunately a couple of images ended up smudged before I could bake them. The ones I was able to get into the oven successfully turned out great, however it was definitely trickier to cut them out in a way that wouldn’t smudge them. I’m thinking that if you used a Heat Tool to help set the ink this may reduce the smudge factor. (I may have to test out this theory)

To add colour to the other images, we coloured using the Stampin’ Blends which worked out great. You do need to be careful not to colour over the lines of the images though otherwise they will disappear as my littlest munchkin found out.

Here’s a picture of some of my completed shrinky dinks…

Stampin’ Up! has such a great selection of ink types as well as colours for whatever projects you are working on. Here’s a summary of the different ink types that Stampin’ Up! offers so you can make sure you have the right ink for your project. (I haven’t included the new Delicata Metallic ink pads from the Holiday catalogue, but if they carry over I will look at adding them)

Stampin’ Up! Ink Types

Every year around this time Stampin’ Up! launches it’s Designer Series Paper sale and this year is no different! From now until the end of the month (September 30) whenever you buy 3 select DSP packs you’ll be able to pick another for FREE.

There are 10 different DSP packs that you can choose from to earn your free one. They are….

Perennial Essence which looks like a watercolour painting and features Balmy Blue, Blackberry Bliss, Blueberry Bushel, Calypso Coral, Crushed Curry, Flirty Flamingo, Mossy Meadow, Old Olive, Petal Pink, So Saffron, Whisper White.

See a Silhouette offers some very creative and colourful designs, it uses Blackberry Bliss, Crushed Curry, Daffodil Delight, Flirty Flamingo, Mango Melody, Mossy Meadow, Night of Navy, Old Olive, Pacific Point, Poppy Parade, Pumpkin Pie, Real Red, Rich Razzleberry, Whisper White.

Come Sail Away is a great option for masculine card designs and features Balmy Blue, Basic Black, Mossy Meadow, Night of Navy, Soft Suede, Whisper White. This DSP is also part of the Come Sail Away Suite.

Magnolia Lane is a favourite of mine and I’ve posted a few of the cards I’ve made with this DSP here. The colours in this pack are Basic Black, Early Espresso, Mossy Meadow, Petal Pink, So Saffron, Whisper White. This pack is also part of a suite, the Magnolia Lane Suite.

Garden Lane has a number of really nice designs featuring of course… different shades of green; Garden Green, Mint Macaron, Mossy Meadow, Pear Pizzazz, Soft Sea Foam, Whisper White.

Follow Your Art is great for projects for the teachers and crafters in your life and uses Basic Gray, Blushing Bride, Calypso Coral, Coastal Cabana, Crushed Curry, Pacific Point, Whisper White.

Woven Threads uses some great colours to give the look of woven rugs and textured fabrics. It features the new In Colours as well as a couple others; Pretty Peacock, Purple Posy, Rococo Rose, Sahara Sand, Seaside Spray, Terracotta Tile, Whisper White.

Dinoroar works well for those who love dinosaurs (both young and old) and uses Flirty Flamingo, Lovely Lipstick, Mango Melody, Old Olive, Pineapple Punch, Pool Party, Pretty Peacock, Whisper White.

Bird Ballad uses a lot of different colours to give a nice soft blended look. This pack is part of the Bird Ballad Suite and is also very popular. It features Basic Black, Basic Gray, Bermuda Bay, Calypso Coral, Crumb Cake, Daffodil Delight, Old Olive, Petal Pink, Pool Party, Smoky Slate, Soft Suede, Whisper White.

And last but definitely not least, as it is the only Specialty DSP that’s part of this sale, is…

Pressed Petals offers some nice vintage designs as well as designs with pressed petals. It uses Crumb Cake, Daffodil Delight, Merry Merlot, Mossy Meadow, Night of Navy, Pear Pizzazz, Rococo Rose, Soft Suede, Very Vanilla.

For more about the different Designer Series Paper packs or to fill up your cart, head over to my website…

www.stampinup.com/inkspirationcards/3for1DSP

I was out at a local Dollarama just yesterday and saw the store had cleared space in order to make room for Christmas/Holiday products. While I do enjoy the Holidays I’m not quite ready to take the plunge just yet. I think that’s while I decided to use stamp sets from the Annual Catalogue for this project.

For this project I decided to use the Crafting Forever and Beauty Abounds cling stamp sets. For the colours I wanted to use something bold and so I chose Bermuda Bay for my card base and really liked how the Mint Macaron looked with it so picked that for the coordinating colour. I also used Mint Macaron ink on the Mint Macaron cardstock to create my own Designer Series Paper and cut the Very Vanilla cardstock smaller than usual so that you could see the images better.

The paint splatters were stamped with Bermuda Bay and the phrase in Mint Macaron; both of these came from the Beauty Abounds cling stamp set. To finish it off I popped up the phrase using Stampin’ Dimensionals and some Basic Adhesive-Backed Sequins.

This one was fun to create! To CASE this for yourself just click on the project sheet and you’re all set.

2019 Crafting For You Project Sheet

For this month’s #simplestamping challenge Stampin’ Up! wanted a Christmas or New Year’s themed card using only stamps, ink, paper and Designer Series Paper. I have fallen in love with the Feels Like Frost Specialty 6 x 6 Designer Series Paper and thought it would be fun to see what I could come up with that as my DSP.

For the card base and ink colour I went with Call Me Clover. It’s such a nice vibrant green and I thought that it would help the Designer Series Paper really stand out. For the background I just cut four 1″ x 5 1/4″ different strips of the Feels Like Frost DSP. The phrase came from the First Frost cling stamp set and I stamped it on a 1 1/2″ x 2″ piece of Whisper White cardstock and then made a Call Me Clover border that was just a bit bigger (1 3/4″ x 2 1/4″).

I debated about how I would step this card up a notch, maybe pop up the phrase with some Stampin’ Dimensionals, add some flowers from the same stamp set, cut out to add a corner accent to the phrase or even add some Silver Metallic Thread. In the end I really love how this turned out and decided to leave it as a single #simplestamping card.

This week has been one filled with ups and downs for our family and those that we love. As a result of one of these downs I went back to the Artfully Aware cling stamp set to make this week’s project and I’m hoping that it will bring some comfort in this difficult time.

For this project I went with Seaside Spray and Crumb Cake for my colours. They go together really nicely, but aren’t too somber. I started with Seaside Spray cardstock as the base and then layered Crumb Cake cardstock on top and used Very Vanilla cardstock to stamps the phrase and images onto.

I wanted to keep the card simple while still adding a little something more to it. The Seaside Spray 1/4″ Metallic Ribbon along with a Rhinestone Basic Jewel and the Stitched Shapes dies I think managed this really well. I debated popping up the phrase using Stampin’ Dimensionals like I did for the image of the two people hugging, but decided I wanted to emphasize that image more than the phrase and so just used SNAIL Adhesive.

I really love how this card turned out! For a list of supplies and step by step instructions simply click on the project sheet.

2019 Artfully Aware Blue Project Sheet

At the end of next month I will be at a crop for the cure event (details below) and so I thought that I would start creating with the Artfully Aware cling stamp set. Plus Breast Cancer Awareness month is coming up soon and so I thought that I would start with pink as my feature colour for this project.

For the colours for this project I decided to use Petal Pink and Crumb Cake in order to highlight the pink ribbon for Breast Cancer Awareness. I used a lot more Petal Pink cardstock than Crumb Cake cardstock for that same reason.

For the ribbon I stamped the image onto Petal Pink cardstock using Crumb Cake ink and then cut it out using my Paper Snips. There is also the option to use the Support Ribbon dies with your die cutting machine. I don’t have those particular dies, so thankfully it wasn’t too much to just cut the ribbon out.

I then stamped the people using Crumb Cake ink and for the phrase I went with Petal Pink ink. Then I used some Rose Metallic Thread and a Rhinestone Basic Jewel to bring the card up a level and add some bling. I love how the Rose Metallic Thread adds another level of pink to the project.

Finally to really make the ribbon pop I used some Stampin’ Dimensionals to have it stand above the rest of the words and images.

Here’s the project sheet complete with supply list and step by step instructions…

2019 Artfully Aware Pink

And here’s all the info for the crop for the cure event I will be at at the end of next month. There are still spaces available if you want to scrap the day away or you can just pop in and say hi.