I've moved! Please come see my new website!

I've moved into my new virtual space now, but of course I'm really not very far away at all, just a click away over at:

Craftingandstamping.com

Please come and join me over there!

Sara xx

A nautical coloured sailboat card for a man

With MIL and FIL staying over at the weekend for dogsitting duties, we also managed to squeeze in a little crafting too (hey, I'm sure it must be compulsory whenever you get two crafters in the same room, lol). Masculine cards were very much the order of the day and so I turned to Sail Away which I think is just ideal for this. I opted for a nautical colour scheme to go with it.

Recipe

Stamp sets: Sail Away, Plane and Simple (sentiment)

Cardstock: Night of Navy, Real Red, Very Vanilla, Whisper White, Watercolor Paper

Ink: Black Stazon, Night of Navy, Watercolor Wonder Crayons, Real Red Marker

DSP: Regals Patterns Stack

Punches: Modern Label, Word Window

Bigz Die: Top Note

Other: Metallic Brads, Metallic Eyelets, Linen Thread

Tools: Big Shot, Crop-a-dile, Aquapainter, Sponge Daubers, Mat Pack

The card base is an A6 portrait of Night of Navy. Top Notes were die cut from Real Red card and Watercolor Paper and the Watercolor Paper one was then hand cut along the perforated design. The boat was stamped in Black Stazon onto the Watercolor Top Note and again onto a scrap of Whisper White card. Aquapainters were used with Watercolor Wonder crayons to colour the sky and the sea and once the paper was dry the boat was coloured with the Real Red marker (to give it a more intense "pop"). The Whisper White version of the boat was used to cut out the sails and adhere them over the sails of the Watercolor version so that they look bright white. The edges of the layer were sponged with Night of Navy ink before adhering direct to the Real Red Top Note and adding Antique Brass Brads at each corner. The sentiment was stamped in Night of Navy ink onto Very Vanilla card and punched out with the Word Window. It was adhered direct to a Modern Label punched from Night of Navy card and Antique Brass Eyelets were set into either end with the Crop-a-dile. Linen Thread was threaded through the eyelets and knotted before popping up the labels on dimensionals and adhering the Linen Thread behind a mat of striped Night of Navy DSP. This mat was adhered direct to the card front and the sailboat image was popped up on dimensionals.

Recipe (Inside)

Stamp sets: Sail Away, Sincere Salutations (sentiment)

Cardstock: Very Vanilla

Ink: Night of Navy

For the inside the sailboat stamp was inked with Night of Navy and then stamped off once onto scrap paper before stamping again onto the Very Vanilla insert. The sentiment was stamped directly with more Night of Navy ink.

And a little bit of news! ... I'm hoping to move in the next day or so. No, not house (way too much work involved there!)

I'm just moving virtually, to what I hope will eventually be a bigger and better website. It's nearly ready, so next time you stop by here, you may find a link directing you to the new site. I really hope that you'll follow me over there (I hate being a Billy No Mates, lol).

Sara xx

A shabby chic thank you card for our dogsitters

Yesterday, hubby and I went to the races at York, followed by a concert by Blondie at the racecourse. Despite poor hubby still being unwell and despite the fact that we didn't win a sausage the whole evening, we still had good fun ;-)

It wasn't the best concert we've been to, the accoustics were pretty strange with the way the noise bounces off the stands, but I've got to say I think Debbie Harry did a good job and put on a fair show for someone of her age.

As we were going to be out for a longer time than our little Bess can plait her legs for, we arranged for my MIL and FIL to come and stay over to dogsit. This is the card I've made to thank them for helping out.

Recipe

Stamp sets: Simply Said, Strength and Hope

Plain Cardstock: Very Vanilla, Pear Pizzazz, So Saffron

Textured Cardstock: Baja Breeze

Ink: Basic Gray, Crumb Cake, So Saffron, Pear Pizzazz

Seam Binding Ribbon: Baja Breeze

Punches: Decorative Label, Itty Bitty Shapes

Bigz Dies: Top Note, Beautiful Butterflies

Embossing Folder: Vintage Wallpaper

Other: Basic Pearls

Tools: Big Shot, Sponge Daubers, Crop-a-dile

The card base is an A6 landscape of Very Vanilla. All layers throughout were sponged with Crumb Cake ink before assembling. Top Notes were die cut from Pear Pizzazz and Very Vanilla card and the Vanilla one was then cut out along the perforated border before embossing with the Vintage Wallpaper folder. The textured Top Note layer was sponged with So Saffron ink. The two Top Notes were matted together, punched with the Crop-a-dile and threaded with Baja Breeze Seam Binding Ribbon before adhering first to the Textured Baja Breeze card mat and then to the card front. A bow was tied around the ribbon over to the left of the card. The thank you sentiment was stamped in Basic Gray ink onto Very Vanilla card and punched out with the Decorative Label. The dotty flowers were stamped off to the side of the sentiment in Pear Pizzazz ink and tiny Basic Pearls added to the centres of the flowers. Two more Decorative Labels were punched from So Saffron card, cut in half and adhered behind the sentiment before popping up on dimensionals on the card front. A small butterfly was die cut from Vary Vanilla card and stamped on one side with text in Basic Gray ink and on the other with the butterfly in So Saffron ink, both stamps from the Strength and Hope set. A small flower was punched from So Saffron card and adhered to the centre of the butterfly with a glue dot and finished with a large Basic Pearl. The butterfly was then added to the card front with glue dots.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

Sara xx

Easel card using the scallop circle die

Readers from earlier this week will know that it was hubby's birthday on Saturday. Poor lamb, he's been proper poorly the last couple of days but luckily he's on the mend, just in time for tonight's treat of a spa visit. Sauna, steam, turkish bath ... and a lovely relaxation area with soothing teas and coffees. Is it wrong to buy him a present I get to share in? Heehee.

As I haven't had time to create a new card for today's post I thought I'd share one that I've been demonstrating at my workshops recently.

The Bigz dies are excellent for creating shaped easel cards.

And if an easel card creates something of a Wow factor then the shaped easels are a double Wow. I just love them and having sent one or two of these to friends recently for birthdays I know they are appreciated.

Recipe

Stamp sets: Sincere Salutations, Four Frames, Perfect Punches

Cardstock: Chocolate Chip, Daffodil Delight, Pear Pizzazz, Very Vanilla

Ink: Chocolate Chip, Old Olive, Daffodil Delight

Punches: Decorative Label, 2" x 1-3/8" Oval

Bigz Dies: Scallop Circle, Flower Daisies 2

Originals Die: Leaves 2

Non-SU: Large Circle (drawn around a saucer and cut out or use an alternative die)

Tools: Big Shot

To make the Scallop Circle Easel card, a folded piece of Chocolate Chip card was positioned a little way down the die (eg. so that around four scallops are showing) and run through the Big Shot. A horizontal fold line was scored approximately halfway down the front of the shaped card. A full Scallop Circle was cut from Chocolate Chip card, using the Big Shot again and adhered to the bottom folded area of the shaped card. Two Large Circles of Very Vanilla were cut out. One was stamped with the sentiment (Sincere Salutations) in Chocolate Chip ink and adhered to the card front and one was adhered direct to the inside of the card. Three large and three small daisies were die cut from Daffodil Delight card and the edges sponged with matching ink before offsetting the petals and adhering them together. A Chocolate Chip flower centre was die cut and adhered to the flower. Two leaves were die cut from Pear Pizzazz card, then one was flipped over before sponging them with Old Olive ink. The leaves were adhered direct to the card front and then the flower was popped up on dimensionals. A spotty frame was stamped in Chocolate Chip ink onto Very Vanilla card and punched out with the Decorative Label. The inside sentiment (Perfect Punches) was stamped in Chocolate Chip ink onto Daffodil Delight card and punched out with the 2" x 1-3/8" Oval. These layers were popped up on dimensionals on the inside of the card to prop the card front at the right angle.

Now off to meet hubby for a bit of rest and relaxation ...

Sara xx

Learn new techniques using Crystal Effects

At our next technique class on Saturday 13 August we'll be covering:

• the Caught in Crystal technique; and
• the faux button technique (two ways)

to make these cards ...

... and a couple of other projects besides.

If you'd like to join us for this class which will take place at St Saviour's Church Hall, High Green, then please book your place(s) using the Paypal button on the right, no later than Saturday 6 July.

You can find more details here or you can email me if you have any queries.

Please note that these projects will need to be left to dry overnight before assembling, so it's best to bring a small box with you to keep them clean and flat on the way home.

Hope to see you there.

Sara xx

Some sweet hearts for my sweethearts birthday

Hope you're having a good weekend.

Today is my hubby's birthday, I won't say how old, heehee. We had planned to go out to Bakewell with his Mum and Dad for the day but unfortunately that got rained off. Never mind, we've had a good day anyway and I've got a few treats in store for him later this week.

For now, here's the card I made for him. Lovehearts are currently his favourite sweets and so I decided to design his card around them:

Recipe

Stamp sets: Sweetheart, I {Heart} Hearts, Party This Way

Cardstock: Riding Hood Red, Basic Grey, Whisper White

Ink: Basic Grey, More Mustard, Riding Hood Red

Punches: Full Heart, Heart to Heart, Modern Label, Word Window, Heart Small, Round Tab

Embossing Folder: Square Lattice

Tools: Big Shot, Stamp-a-ma-jig

The card base is an A6 landscape of Riding Hood Red. An aperture was punched in the lower right corner using the Full Heart punch. This was used to mark in pencil where the heart needed to be placed on the Whisper White and Basic Grey mat layers. The heart frame from the Sweetheart set was stamped in Basic Grey ink around the Whisper White pencilled heart using the Stamp-a-ma-jig for placement. Various large hearts were stamped in More Mustard and Basic Grey inks direct to the Whisper White layer. The trio of hearts were also stamped out separately in both More Mustard and Basic Grey inks onto Whisper White card and punched out with the Heart to Heart punch. These were adhered direct to the Whisper White layer and any overhang was trimmed flush to the edge of the card. The Whisper White layer was then run through the Square Lattice embossing folder and the pencilled hearts were punched from both the Whisper White and Basic Grey layers before adhering them together with the Treat Cup sandwiched between. A Round Tab punched from Riding Hood Red card was adhered around a small panel of matching card. This was used to work out the placement of Sticky Strip on the reverse of the layers before adhering them to the card front so that the tabbed card can be used to access the sweets:

The birthday sentiment was stamped in More Mustard ink onto Whisper White card and punched out with the Word Window. This was then adhered direct to a Modern Label punched from Basic Grey card and then popped up on dimensionals on the card front. Finally the small heart was stamped in Riding Hood Red ink onto Whisper White card and punched out with the Small Heart and popped up on a sliver of dimensional overlapping the sentiment.

And here's the inside:

Recipe (inside)

Stamp sets: I {Heart} Hearts, Something Sweet (sentiments)

Cardstock: Whisper White

Ink: Basic Grey, Riding Hood Red

Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

Sara xx

July batch of thank yous for my customers

Here's my batch of thank yous for my customers this month:

This is a simple design to show off the gold embossing of the sentiment. The fine grade embossing powder allows even small text to be read clearly.

Recipe

Stamp set: So Many Thanks

Cardstock: Crumb Cake, Early Espresso, Very Vanilla

Ink: Versamark

3mm Taffeta Ribbon: Early Espresso

Other: Gold EP

Tools: Heat Tool, Embossing Buddy

The card base is a small square of Crumb Cake. A smaller square of Very Vanilla card was cleaned with an Embossing Buddy then stamped with So Many Thanks in Versamark and heat embossed with Gold EP. This layer was matted onto a square of Early Espresso card. A small piece of Early Espresso ribbon was wrapped around the top left corner and secured on the reverse. A dinky bow of the same ribbon was added with a glue dot. The layered image was popped up on dimensionals on the card front.

Thanks for stopping by.

Sara xx

A matching Springtime Vintage bag complete with gift

Yesterday I shared with you the card that I'd made to welcome a new member of our Stampin' Up! team. And I'm back now as promised to share the little gift bag that I made to go with it.

This is the little bag that I sent to Hazel:

Recipe

Cardstock: Very Vanilla, Not Quite Navy, Baja Breeze

Ink: Stampin' Pastels

DSP: Springtime Vintage

Punches: Eyelet Border, Round Tab

Seam Binding Ribbon: Baja Breeze

Bigz L Die: Fun Flowers

Embosslits Die: Sweet Buttons

Other: Crystal Effects

The bag design is the same one as in my Greenhouse Garden tutorial here. To trim it up, I made the flower in the same way as for the matching card.

Inside I'd popped some 6" x 6" Springtime Vintage DSP together with a pack of matching ribbons:

Fancy joining my team? Ask me how.

Sara xx

Welcoming another team member with a card

My clever downline Jan recently added another member to our merry little Stampin' Up! team and so I made a card and gift to welcome her.

They're exactly the same as I made for Chrissi here but I altered the colour scheme for this one. Here's the card:

Recipe

Stamp set: Something to Celebrate

Cardstock: Baja Breeze, Very Vanilla

Ink: Very Vanilla, Stampin' Pastels

DSP: Springtime Vintage

Punches: Eyelet Border, Modern Label

Seam Binding Ribbon: Baja Breeze

Bigz L Die: Fun Flowers

Embosslits Die: Sweet Buttons

Other: Crystal Effects, Basic Pearls

The card blank is an A6 landscape of Baja Breeze. A mat of Very Vanilla was punched along the very bottom with the Eyelet Border and covered with strips of Springtime Vintage DSP. Sticky strip was laid all along the join at the middle and Baja Breeze Seam Binding Ribbon gathered and pleated along it for an easy ruffled ribbon. These layers were adhered direct to the card front. Using the Fun Flowers Die I cut the large and small flowers from Very Vanilla card and the middle one from Springtime Vintage DSP. The edges of the card flowers were dusted with the Baja Breeze chalk. The sentiment was stamped in Baja Breeze ink onto Very Vanilla card, punched out with the Modern Label, dusted again with chalk and adhered directly behind the smallest flower. The petal layers were adhered direct to each other and then dimensionals were used to pop the flower on the front of the card. A faux button was made and added to the centre of the flower (join our August technique class to learn how to make these!). Finally a little pearl was added to the end of the label.

I'll share the gift with you tomorrow.

Want to join my team? I need to catch up with Jan now, she's beating me in growing her team :D

Not that I'm competitive at all!

Join direct with me and you'll get a whole range of goodies. Just email me for more information or give me a call on 0775 1133886.

Sara xx

Xmas Stamp a Stack - Saturday 6 August

Come and join me on Saturday 6 August to get a head start on your Christmas cards.

What is a Stamp a Stack?

A Stamp a Stack is an event where we make multiple copies of the same card so that you end up with a "stack" of cards. In this case we'll be making a total of 12 cards - 3 of each of the designs shown above.

Where and when?

12:30-15:30

Saturday 6 August

at Tankersley Welfare Hall

How much:

For your entrance fee of £21 you'll get:

All materials needed to make 12 cards (with envelopes)

A pack of Basic Rhinestones

4 individual projects with demonstration and emailed instruction sheets

Refreshments

and a little Christmas cheer come early ...

Do I need to bring anything?

You certainly don't need to bring anything at all however you might want to bring your preferred adhesives, scissors and/or paper cutter if you are more comfortable using particular items. We will be using the following stamp sets:

Serene Snowflakes

Dasher

Delightful Decorations

Comtempo Christmas

Sparkly & Bright

These stamps will be provided to use on the day but if you already own any of them you may want to bring your own set or you can order them now and I'll bring them to the Stamp a Stack.

How do I book?

Please email me or use the Paypal button on the right hand side menu to book. Bookings close on Saturday 30 July.

If you have any other questions then please get in touch.

Elegant monotone card using the Simply Said stamp set

Here's a card that I'll be demonstrating at a workshop tonight. I want to show the difference in results between stamping with the Craft White ink on it's own and using the Craft White or Versamark with White Embossing Powder. I'll also be showing how well the Signo White Gel Pen works with White heat embossing. It's the perfect finishing touch for adding a little "colouring in" that makes an image really pop!

Recipe

Stamp Set: Simply Said

Cardstock: Concord Crush, Whisper White

Ink: Craft White, Versamark, Versamarker, Signo White gel pen

Punches: Corners, Word Window, Modern Label

Other: White EP

Tools: Heat Tool, Embossing Buddy

The card base is an A6 portrait of Concord Crush, matted with Whisper White. Another mat of Concord Crush was stamped randomly (and off the card) with one of the large fill flowers from the Simply Said set and then in between with the dinky flower, both using Craft White ink. This was set aside to dry before adhering direct to the card front (Craft White is a similar ink to Versamark and needs a little longer to dry or you can use a heat tool if you're in a hurry). The dotty flowers were stamped onto a panel of Concord Crush card with Craft White/Versamark ink and then heat embossed with White EP. The flowers were then coloured in with the White Signo Gel Pen (using a light pressure so that the inks flows). This image was matted onto Whisper White card and Whisper White punched Corners were popped up on dimensionals on opposite corners. The whole layer was then popped up on dimensionals on the card front. The sentiment is longer than this but only the "thank you" was inked, using a Versamarker to allow more precision, and then heat embossed with White EP. This was punched out with the Word Window and then adhered direct to a Modern Label punched from Concord Crush before popping up on dimensionals below the main image.

The embossing really stands out colourwise and texturally in comparison to the muted, almost distressed effect of the Craft White ink. Both excellent effects in their own way.

Recipe (inside)

Stamp set: Simply Said

Cardstock: Whisper White

Ink: Concord Crush

The insert was quick and easy to create with this same set. The sentiment was stamped with Concord Crush ink and then the flowers were stamped repeatedly off the bottom of the page.

If you'd like to order this set, or any other SU! products then please email me.

Off now to the workshop!

Sara xx

Double embossing technique for a poppy card

Here's another technique to try with your Big Shot embossing folders - double embossing.

The background paper has been dry embossed in the Big Shot and then heat embossed with Black Embossing Powder.

Recipe

Stamp set: Sincere Salutations

Cardstock: Poppy Parade, Basic Black, Certainly Celery

Ink: Versamark

DSP: Sunny Garden

Punches: Fancy Flower, 1-3/4" Circle, 1" Circle

Satin Ribbon: Basic Black

Embossing Folder: Vintage Wallpaper

Other: Black EP

Tools: Big Shot, Crimper, Brayer

The card base is an A6 portrait of Poppy Parade which was matted with a layer of Basic Black card. The Vintage Wallpaper embossing folder was brayered with Versamark ink on one side and a large mat of Sunny Garden DSP was inserted about halfway into the folder and run through the Big Shot. Black EP was applied over the Versamark and then heat embossed to create the double embossed effect. The sentiment was stamped in the top right corner with Versamark and also heat embossed with Black EP. Sticky Strip was applied across the centre and Basic Black Satin ribbon ruffled along it. This was then adhered direct to the front of the card. Three Fancy Flowers were punched from Poppy Parade card, spritzed with water and crumpled then left to dry. The leaves were made by punching two 1-3/4" Circles of Certainly Celery then reinserting them in the punch and punching a crescent moon from one side of each to create a leaf shape. They were folded in half and run through the Crimper for extra texture. The three flowers were layered together directly, offsetting the petals, then the leaves were adhered behind and a 1" Circle of Basic Black adhered to the centre. The whole flower was popped up on dimensionals on the card front.

A little more involved than straightforward embossing of either kind but worth the effort I think.

Thanks for stopping by.

Sara xx

Summer sale! Saturday 9 July

A quick announcement to let you know that I'll be having a summer sale of retired stamps, card, papers and accessories:

Saturday 9 July

11am-1pm

St Saviour's Church Hall (map/directions are here).

Please drop in and take a look if you're in the area.

Sara xx

A top layout for showcasing pretty papers

Today's card is a great design for showcasing your prettiest papers. Just select five papers that work well together, a card colour that contrasts with them and a couple of matching ribbons. I've used one of Stampin' Up!'s Specialty DSPs (Designer Series Paper) here, which although you can't really see it in the pic, has wonderful textures, making it a fun, touchy-feely card too.

Recipe

Stamp set: Because I Care (sentiment) (Level 1 Hostess)

Cardstock: Old Olive

Ink: Rose Red

DSP: Sweet and Sour Specialty

Punch: 1" Circle

Satin Ribbon: Old Olive

3mm Taffeta Ribbon: Pumpkin Pie

The card base is an A6 portrait of Old Olive. Four of the papers were cut into 1" strips and adhered behind a panel of Old Olive card. A plainer paper was kept for the right hand edge so that the sentiment would be visible). 1" Circles were punched from the same papers and adhered behind the base of the Old Olive panel, with just half the circle revealed and mixing the papers up. A strip of a different paper was adhered horizontally across the Old Olive panel and Old Olive and Pumpkin Pie ribbons were wrapped around it before adhering all the layers to the front of the card. The sentiment was stamped in the upper right corner with Rose Red ink and a dinky bow of Pumpkin Pie was added on a glue dot to finish.

Why not try this with some of those papers you've been saving up. It doesn't take too much of each one to create a great card - go on, you really can spare a sliver of each, honest! Lol. Please let me know how you get on with it by leaving me a comment.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

Sara xx

Colour coach blog hop

Hi and welcome to our Colour Coach blog hop. A bunch of us from over at the In Love With Stamping Forum have joined together to put on a major hop for you today. A big thanks to Anthea for organising this.

If you've joined me from my friend Teri's blog then thank you for stopping by (I love that bright and cheery combo and the handbag is on my CASE list now). If you're starting here then you'll be able to work your way around this loop of 11 blogs until you get back here and then you can skip to the other loop if you like (the links are at the end of this post). If you get here early then we may possibly have a few glitches with the links but please persevere or pop back later, it will be well worth it and we do get them all ironed out as quickly as we can.

Now if you haven't come across the Colour Coach before, I should just explain that it's an easy to use tool that helps you create great colour combos. You can find it on page 81 of the main catalogue.

I used the one of the suggested combinations:

Sahara Sand
Bravo Burgundy; and
Pink Pirouette

to create this card and gift basket duo:

Here's the card in more detail:

Recipe

Stamp set: Because I Care (sentiment)

Cardstock: Sahara Sand, Bravo Burgundy, Pink Pirouette

Ink: Sahara Sand, Bravo Burgundy

Punches: Corner Rounder, Boho Blossoms, Itty Bitty Shapes

Bigz L Die: Fun Flowers

Embossing Folder: Square Lattice, Perfect Polka Dots

Other: Basic Rhinestones

The card is cut just 0.5cm short of an A6 landscape. It was cut short so that the embossing covers the full width. The top half of the card front was run through the Big Shot with the Perfect Polka Dots embossing folder and then the right hand side corners were punched with the Corner Rounder and the sentiment was stamped in Bravo Burgundy ink. For the middle panel, one side of the Square Lattice embossing folder was covered with Bravo Burgundy ink using a brayer then a panel of Sahara Sand card was inserted and the sandwich was run through the Big Shot to get the coloured texture. Both the embossed panel and a mat of Bravo Burgundy were punched with the Corner Rounder on the right hand side before adhering them to the front of the card. The large and small flowers on the Fun Flowers die were cut from Pink Pirouette card and sponged around the edges with Sahara Sand ink. Sahara Sand card was used for the medium flower on the Fun Flowers die and this was sponged with Bravo Burgundy ink. These were adhered direct to each other and popped up on dimensionals on the card front. The largest of the Boho Blossoms was punched from Sahara Sand card and sponged with Bravo Burgundy ink. This was layered with the smallest Boho Blossoms flower punched from Bravo Burgundy card and the teeny many petaled flower from the Itty Bitty Shapes punched from Pink Pirouette card. These were adhered to each other and then popped up on another dimensional in the centre of the large flower. Finally a rhinestone was added to the centre of the flower.

Recipe

Cardstock: Sahara Sand, Bravo Burgundy, Pink Pirouette

Ink: Bravo Burgundy

DSP: Subtles Patterns Stack, Regals Patterns Stack

Punches: Scallop Trim Border, Boho Blossoms, Itty Bitty Shapes

Bigz Die: Scallop Envelope

Sizzlits Die: Little Leaves

Embossing Folder: Square Lattice

Other: Basic Rhinestones, Clear Rhinestone Brads

For the basket, four Scallop Envelopes were cut from Sahara Sand and coloured and textured as for the panel on the thank you card. The scallop flap was cut again four times from Bravo Burgundy DSP and adhered behind the basket flaps in line with the perforated decoration. The envelopes were assembled into a basket shape and a square of Sahara Sand card was placed in the bottom to cover the small (approx 3-4mm square) hole that remains. A strip of Bravo Burgundy card was punched on each side with the Scallop Trim Border and then matted with strips of Pink Pirouette and Bravo Burgundy DSP. Two small flowers were created using the smallest Boho Blossom punched from Bravo Burgundy card and the many petaled flower in the Itty Bitty Shapes punched from Pink Pirouette card. These were secured through either side of the basket and the handle with Rhinestone Brads. Little Leaves were die cut from Bravo Burdgundy card and adhered direct to the front of the basket and more matching flowers (this time finished with Basic Rhinestones instead of brads), were added with glue dots.

Well I hope that you've enjoyed my creations and I'll pass you on to the next stop in the hop which is Sarah and she has some gorgeous butterflies waiting for you.

And if you'd like to take a look at the other loop then you can start here at Anthea's blog.

Have a great weekend.

Sara xx

Happy Birthday card using Timeless Type alphabet die set

Well I got a chance to use my new Timeless Type alphabet dies for a clean and simple birthday card this week.

Bright, cheery colours and an equally cheery sentiment - hopefully it will be enough to brighten anyone's birthday, no matter the weather.

Recipe

Stamp sets: Curly Cute, On a Pedestal

Cardstock: Pretty in Pink, Melon Mambo, Daffodil Delight, Whisper White

Ink: Melon Mambo, Crumb Cake, Pretty in Pink

DSP: Subtles Patterns Stack

Punches: Fancy Flower, Modern Label, 2" x 1-3/8" Oval, 1-3/4" x 7/8" Oval, 1-3/4" Circle, 1-3/8" Circle

Medium Sizzlits Die: Timeless Type Junior Alphabet

Other: Basic Rhinestones

Tools: Big Shot

The card base is an A6 landscape of Pretty in Pink, matted with Melon Mambo card and Pretty in Pink DSP. "Happy" letters were die cut from Melon Mambo card and adhered direct to the card front. The smaller Oval was used to punch more Pretty in Pink DSP which was then matted onto a larger Oval punched from Melon Mambo card and the layers popped op ont the card front. Using the Melon Mambo marker direct to the Curly Cute Birthday stamp, it was stamped onto Whisper White card and punched with the Modern Label before adding Basic Rhinestones and popping up on dimensionals onto the Ovals. Crumb Cake and Pretty in Pink markers were used direct to the cake stamp from the On a Pedestal set and stamped out onto Whisper White card. The cherry on top was stamped using Melon Mambo ink and the complete image punched with the 1-3/8" Circle. This was matted direct to a 1-3/4" Circle punched from Melon Mambo then popped up on dimensionals onto two Fancy Flowers punched from Daffodil Delight and offset slightly. The whole flower was then popped up on dimensionals onto the card front.

Loving this Timeless Type alpha and I can see it's going to be great for personalising cards.

Please stop by again tomorrow for our Colour Coach blog hop. We'll have lots of fantastic colour inspiration for you.

Sara xx

A rising star on my team and my card for her

I made this card last week but didn't want to share it until I knew that it had been received. My super talented downline Jan recently added another member to her Stampin' Up! team and I wanted to congratulate her on her success.

I'm showing customers the inlaid embossing technique at my workshops at the moment and so decided to use the same technique for this card. And as Jan's favourite colour is orange, I also incorporated that into her card ... just a little, heehee.

Recipe

Stamp sets: Business Basics

Cardstock: Pumpkin Pie, Peach Parfait, Tangerine Tango, Very Vanilla

Ink: Pumpkin Pie

Punches: Star, 1" Circle, 1-1/4" Circle, 1-3/8" Circle, Corner Rounder

Embossing Folder: Perfect Polka Dots

The card base is an A6 portrait of Pumpkin Pie, matted with a layer of Very Vanilla. Panels of Peach Parfait, Pumpkin Pie and Tangerine Tango were punched with the Corner Rounder on all corners and lined up on grid paper. Stars punched from Very Vanilla card were adhered onto the panels, covering the joins and once dry the panels were cut apart again and then run through the Perfect Polka Dots embossing folder to get the inlaid embossed effect. To keep the layers down (for sending through the mail) the panels were adhered direct to the front of the card, keeping them evenly spaced. The sentiment was stamped in Pumpkin Pie ink onto Very Vanilla card and punched with the 1" Circle. It was matted onto a 1-1/4" Circle of Pumpkin Pie and then a 1-3/8" Circle of Very Vanilla before popping it up on dimensionals on the card front.

Recipe

Stamp set: Perfect Punches

Cardstock: Very Vanilla

Ink: Pumpkin Pie

For the inside the sentiment was simply stamped onto a Very Vanilla card insert with Pumpkin Pie ink.

If you'd like to join my team and have your successes celebrated or if you'd like to hostess a workshop and see the inlaid embossing in real life, then please get in touch.

Thanks for stopping by.

Sara xx

July Technique class - bookings close on Saturday

Just a quick reminder that bookings for this class close on Saturday.

At the next technique class on Saturday 9 July we'll be covering:

• the glitter window technique; and
• the faux metal technique

to make these Christmas cards ...

... and a couple of other projects besides.

If you'd like to join us for this class which will take place at St Saviour's Church Hall, High Green, then please book your place(s) using the Paypal button on the right, no later than Saturday 2 July.

You can find more details here or you can email me if you have any queries.

Hope to see you there.

Sara xx

Faux leather technique for some girlie bags

Well MIL and I had a great afternoon crafting yesterday. She came along to my last technique class where we covered the faux leather technique to make a man's wallet gift card holder. Yesterday we applied the same technique to a more girlie creation.

I'd seen a few pictures of this little bag out here in blogland and worked out some dimensions for my own version:

Recipe

Cardstock: Rich Razzleberry

Ink: Versamark

6mm Grosgrain Ribbon: Rich Razzleberry

Bigz Die: Top Note

Other: Filigree Brad, Circle Fire Brad

Tools: Heat Tool, Bone Folder, Crop-a-dile

Non-SU: Velcro spot

The base for the bag is an open top box and three top note die cuts. The faux leather technique is applied to all the top notes. Two of the top notes are then trimmed along the long edge and adhered to the front and back of the box. The third top note is scored and folded and the narrow edge adhered to the back of the bag. Brads and a velcro dot are attached for the closure and some ribbon threaded for the wristlet/handle.

Here's another one done in Real Red:

And my MIL's version in Tempting Turquoise:

Enjoy the rest of the weekend.

Sara xx

Blog hop on Friday 1st July

Hi folks, hope you're having a good weekend. I've been busy crafting but I'm not sure that the recipient will have got the card yet, so I don't want to spoil any surprise.

My MIL's coming over this afternoon though, so we'll be doing some more crafting, that I should be able to share tomorrow!

Meanwhile, I just thought I'd give a bit of advance notice that I'm joining some of the other In Love With Stamping forum members this coming Friday, for one of our mammoth blog hops. We've got 25 blogs participating, split into two groups. This hop is built around the colour coach.

This is a fantastic tool for coming up with colour combos that work. The coach gives a Dynamic Duo, (for a stunning monochromatic look eg. Old Olive and Certainly Celery) and then gives a couple of Colour Combos for every single SU colour. In addition to that, you can just swivel the cards around to test out your own combinations. Please email me if you'd like to order one.

For the blog hop we'll each be picking a colour combo from the coach, to use for our project(s).

So please make a note in your diary to pop by on Friday for some colour combo inspiration (of course I'd love to have your company in between as well, lol).

Sara xx

New toys to play with

Err, I mean new tools to work with ... lol!

I just had to share what Mr UPS man brought me today. This was my birthday present to myself, aided and abetted by SU!

You can find this die set on page 8 of the Mini Catalogue but the product info doesn't do it justice IMHO:

What you don't get from the catalogue (though it is there in brackets under he price), is that the set of dies come housed in their own little box so that you can keep them together and make sure that none of the letters get lost. And at the back of the box is a cardboard insert:

Remove that and you can pop your other sizzlit dies in for safekeeping (even though they're not long enough to fill the space entirely).

Now I've got all the letters in upper and lower case, all the numbers and a few extra shapes too. Can't wait to play with these now!

BTW although this is one of our most expensive items, I got £'s discount off (in addition to my normal demo discount) as a birthday present from Stampin' Up! How fabulous a company is this to work with - love it!

If you'd like to know more about the birthday discount offer and other ways that you can save on big ticket items by becoming a demo, then please get in touch.

Back soon.

Sara xx