Stars for a man's card for the Mojo Monday challenge

Oh dear - well there was certainly a lot of shouting at the TV on Sunday. And now that England have gone out I'm still not free and clear of all the football. DH is just as keen to watch all the other games. Ah well, more time for crafting at least.

Last night I had a go at the MojoMonday challenge:

Showing unusual patience for me, lol, I waited until this morning to take a pic so that I wouldn't go smudging the Crystal Effects. I liked the colour combo of Soft Suede and Tempting Turquoise that I used on Sunday so decided to stick with it for my square take on the sketch:

Recipe

Stamp set: In the Stars

Cardstock: Tempting Turquoise, Soft Suede, Whisper White

Ink: Soft Suede, Tempting Turquoise, Stampin' Pastels

DSP: Autumn Meadows

Punch: Large Star

Polka Dot Grosgrain Ribbon: Soft Suede

Other: Dazzling Diamonds, Crystal Effects

Non-SU: Circle die-cuts

I sponged the DSP around the edges with Soft Suede. The stars and the sentiment were stamped with Soft Suede onto Whisper White card and matted onto Soft Suede. They were then chalked with a combination of Taken with Teal and Tempting Turquoise Stampin' Pastels to just soft the white a little. The sentiment star was stamped with Tempting Turquoise onto Whisper White and punched out with the Large Star. I used the narrow nib of the Tombow to draw around the edges of the star and then applied Dazzling Diamonds. When that had dried I then applied a generous layer of Crystal Effects. I think next time I'll try heat setting with Versamark and clear embossing powder first to see if that prevents the ink bleeding - I love the glossy effect but the text is a little too washed out for me here.

Thanks for stopping by.

Sara xx

A beautiful thing in suede and turquoise

Hope you're having a restful Sunday. I'm just enjoying the peace and quiet - birds singing, everything else nice and still ... before the footy begins and DH starts shouting at the tv. I keep telling him they're not paying any attention to what he's saying, but it doesn't stop him. Then again, it never stops me when I know he doesn't pay attention to what I'm saying, lol.

I'm carrying on with my mission to get inking my underused stamps and today I've combined two of them:

Recipe

Stamp sets: En Francais, A Beautiful Thing

Cardstock: Soft Suede, Tempting Turquoise, Very Vanilla

Ink: Soft Suede, Taken With Teal, Tempting Turquoise, Versamark

Punches: Scallop Oval, Large Oval

Using Soft Suede on the En Francais background stamp, I stamped off onto some Very Vanilla card and set aside to use for another project and then stamped again onto Very Vanilla to get the softer colour used here. I tore across and sponged all the edges with more Soft Suede ink. Next I stamped the solid flower from A Beautiful Thing with Versamark onto Tempting Turquoise and using the Stamp-a-ma-jig for positioning, stamped the centre detail with Soft Suede, stamping off first each time to soften the colour again. The small wheel was then stamped between the flowers using Versamark. The edges of the Tempting Turquoise layer were sponged with Taken With Teal ink. These layers were matted direct to the front of the Soft Suede card blank. The sentiment was stamped in Tempting Turquoise on Vary Vanilla and punched with the Large Oval. A Scallop Oval was punched from Soft Suede. Both punched ovals were sponged with Soft Suede and popped up on dimensionals.

Keeping up my new resolution (for now at least) to complete the insert as I make the card, I created a border as well as stamping a sentiment inside:

Recipe (inside)

Stamp sets: Whimsical Words (sentiment), A Beautiful Thing

Cardstock: Very Vanilla

Ink: Soft Suede, Tempting Turquoise

I used the stamp-a-ma-jig to extend the little row of four flowers across the whole width.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

Sara xx

A quick reminder of my Summer Reward Programme

Today Jan and I have been at the Hemsworth Craft Fair. A great day with lots of lovely people (if you picked up my flyer and are visiting for the first time then - Hi and welcome).

I've spent the last few nights finishing off my cards ready for the fair (that'll teach me to do all the inserts at the time I make them in future, lol) so no new craft projects today, I'm afraid.

Instead, a quick reminder about my Summer Reward Programme. I only realised today that although I'd posted details of it on my offers page and in my newsletter at the beginning of the month, I hadn't mentioned it on this main page and so you may not know about it yet. But don't worry, it's not too late to get an entry into the June draw:

Summer Reward Programme

During the months of June, July and August, you will have an opportunity to win some fabulous SU! goodies including cardstock in our new colours, designer papers, ribbons and stamp sets. I will increase the number of prizes as the number of entries grows. There will be a mini draw each at the end of June and July and a grand draw at the end of August. Your name will be entered in the draw whenever you attend classes, place orders, or host a workshop.

Attend a stamp class: 1 ticket

Attend the Summer Stamptacular: 2 tickets

Place a £45 order: 1 ticket

Place a £90 order: 2 tickets ... etc with an extra ticket for each extra £45 ordered

Host a workshop (real or virtual): 5 tickets

(Please note that this reward programme is exclusive to bookings/orders made through me and only available in the UK)

Please email me to place an order or book a class/workshop. Or you can pop over to the info on my classes here and book your class securely through Paypal, using the Buy Now buttons.

I'll be back tomorrow with some crafting.

Sara xx

My Dad's Father's Day card using a non-SU stamp (shock, horror)

I nearly forgot to share with you the card that I made for my Dad for Father's Day. Although Father's Day is past, the elements can easily be adapted or reused for any man's card.

Now I admit that since becoming an SU demo I don't often use other stamps - I've been spoiled for the quality and usually have enough to pick from. But I spotted this stamp on my travels some time ago (sorry but can't remember whose it is) and thought it would be ideal for my Dad as he loves to BBQ and it's a stamp and a recipe combined.

Recipe

Stamp sets: Short Order Alphabet (retired)

Plain cardstock: Whisper White

Textured Cardstock: Really Rust, Not Quite Navy

Ink: Black Stazon

Punch: Scallop Circle

Other: Antique Brass Jumbo Eyelets, Antique Brass Brads (Vintage), Twill Tape, Linen Thread

Non-SU: BBQ recipe stamp

I stamped the image using Black Stazon onto Whisper White card and matted it onto Really Rust Textured card. The corners of this Really Rust layer were punched using a single petal of the Scallop Circle and this was then layered onto Not Quite Navy Textured card and Antique Brass Brads added at each corner. This main image was popped up on dimensionals on the card front. For the sentiment I stamped Dad with my alphabet set using Black Stazon on the Twill Tape. The ends of the tape were folded to the centre and the I used my Crop-a-dile to punch holes and set the Jumbo Eyelets. Linen thread was knotted through the eyelets and secured around the back of the Not Quite Navy mat before popping up on dimensionals beneath the main image.

Recipe

Stamp Set: Occasional Greetings

Cardstock: Whisper White

Ink: SU Markers in Really Rust and Not Quite Navy

For the inside I used markers direct to stamp to selectively colour the sentiment.

My Dad doesn't take a lot of interest in my crafting (thinks I must have too much time on my hands, lol - totally forgets how much he likes building things) but he seemed to like this one, at least he looked at it for more than 2 seconds.

Thanks for stopping by.

Sara xx

A crafty evening with friends from ILWS

On Saturday night I got together with a few friends from the ILWS forum for some crafting chat and a bit of stamping (thanks for your company ladies, I had such a fun evening).

I wasn't sure whether we were doing a card swap. It hadn't been mentioned but I've been caught out before at gatherings of crafters and so to be prepared I spent Saturday afternoon making copies of this:

Recipe

Stamp sets: Studio Sketches, Fresh Cuts (sentiment)

Cardstock: Kraft, Soft Suede

Ink: Soft Suede, Black Stazon, Watercolour Wonder Crayons

Wide Polka-dot Ribbon: Soft Suede

Taffeta Ribbon: Kraft

Other: Cutter Kit, Aqua Painter

I stamped the small fruit bowl in Soft Suede in the bottom right corner of a Kraft card blank. Using Black Stazon I stamped the arrangement of fruit almost halfway down the left side of a layer of Kraft. I coloured the image with Watercolour Wonder Crayons and used the Aqua Painter to blend the colours. The sentiment from the Fresh Cuts set was stamped with Soft Suede above the image. I tore away the bottom right corner of the Kraft layer on a diagonal and placing it against the Soft Suede layer, tore away the same corner of that layer. Using the distressing tool on the Cutter Kit, I distressed the edges of both layers and curled the top right corners. I sponged the edges of the top Kraft layer with Soft Suede and wrapped Soft Suede polka-dot ribbon around the top right corner (with the plain side outward). Kraft taffeta ribbon was pleated onto the Soft Suede ribbon. The Kraft layer was adhered direct to the Soft Suede layer and then both layers were popped up on dimensionals onto the card front.

I made one for each of us and a few extra, just in case we had any last minute joiners:

It was lovely to get back in to a little watercolouring and we spotted a great idea in the US catty for using the crayons, so watch this space. We spent a lot of the evening picking out our faves from their retiring catty and wondering how likely it is they'll make it into our new one in October, lol. I think I'd better start saving my pennies now, in case even a fraction of them make it over.

Sara xx

A chalked background for the Stamp With Us inspiration challenge

A Happy Father's Day to any Dads reading this (please, please, if there are any, will you leave me a comment, it would be great to know there are some fellas reading this blog).

We have a new challenge today over at Stamp With Us and it's this inspiration piece:

Now these are really strong colours so I thought I'd knock them back a little by using Stampin' Pastels for the colour rather than markers or ink.

Recipe

Stamp sets: Baroque Motifs, Oval All

Cardstock: Real Red, Only Orange, Whisper White

Ink: Versamark, Stampin' Pastels

DSP: Bride Specialty

Punches: Scallop Oval, Large Oval

Other: Gold EP, Red Rhinestone Brads (Circle Fire)

I sponged the Only Orange and Pink Passion Pastels onto the Bride DSP using daubers and blew off any excess chalk. You can use any of the colouring tools with this DSP and the embossed background will resist the colour and show the pattern. Using Versamark I stamped the scroll design onto the chalked paper and heat embossed with Gold powder. I also stamped and embossed the little flowers and the sentiment in the same way onto Whisper White card. The flowers were cut out and red rhinestone brads added to the centres. As the prongs of the brad extended beyond the flower I trimmed them down with my Craft and Rubber Scissors before popping the flowers up on dimensionals. The rest is matting and layering.

Please take a look at the wonderful samples prepared by the rest of our design team - I just love the inspiration they provide.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

Sara xx

A quick last minute card for Fathers Day

Here's a quick and easy last minute card for Father's Day that uses just one stamp, some black and white card and a coloured ink.

Recipe

Stamp Set: Occasional Greetings

Cardstock: Basic Black, Whisper White

Ink: Basic Gray, Real Red

Other: Craft knife, Stamp-a-ma-jig

I started by stamping the main sentiment on the Whisper White front layer, at an angle, in prime position. I then cut this out using a craft knife and using the stamp-a-ma-jig, stamped the sentiment in rows around the aperture using Basic Gray to give a newsprint look. Using the aperture layer as my template I pencilled where the window should appear on the black card front and cut this out with the craft knife just a fraction smaller than the original (about 1mm on each edge) to create a frame. The Whisper White insert was adhered to the inside back, the window pencilled in place and the stamp-a-ma-jig used to position the stamped sentiment in Real Red. All pencil marks were erased to finish.

Here's the inside - plenty of room to write your personal message to Dad.

Have a great weekend.

Sara xx

Yikes! Where did Father's Day come creeping up from?

I actually started preparing for Father's Day weeks ago and got my Dad a few little gifts ... and then figured it was ages away and I could forget about it again. Big mistake. All of a sudden it's this Sunday and I still haven't made the card. Luckily I had got a few ideas in mind.

I've been wanting to have a go at one of these little origami shirts for ages and honestly, they aren't too difficult. A bone folder does help get the creases crisp though.

Recipe

Stamp set: Occasional Greetings

Cardstock: So Saffron, Elegant Eggplant, Barely Banana

Ink: Elegant Eggplant

DSP: Perfect Plum Patterns

Narrow Grosgrain Ribbon: Elegant Eggplant

Other: Mat Pack, Paper Piercing Tool

For the shirt, I followed the excellent instructions provided by Diane over at Lakeside Stamper for her Father's Day card last year. I used the same dimensions of DSP but left the shirt front whole (as I was covering it with the tie anyway). To make the tie, I tied a knot in a length of narrow grosgrain ribbon and then folded one end over, trimmed it short and stuck it behind the "tie knot" with a glue dot. I then trimmed the other end of the ribbon to a point. The corners of the shirt background were decorated using the paper piercing tool and the mat pack template.

I'll try and fit another one in before Sunday if I can, just in case I'm not the only last minute card maker :-)

Sara xx

A splash of red for the Mojo Monday challenge

And I'm back crafting. Yay!

It was my first day back at work today following the exams and so I looked forward to getting back home tonight. And then DH wanted to watch the Brazil game - well that's all the motivation I needed to get back crafting lol (apologies to those of you as keen as my hubby - I've just never had any interest in football at all).

I broke myself in gently with this week's Mojo Monday sketch:

And decided to go with one of my favourite colour combos:

Recipe

Stamp sets: Seeing Spots, Garden Dream

Cardstock: Basic Black, Whisper White

Ink: Basic Black, Real Red

DSP: Night & Day Specialty

Punches: Scallop Circle, 1-3/8" Circle, 1-1/4" Circle

Wide Grosgrain Ribbon: Real Red

Other: Real Red Brads (Bold Brights Collection)

I stamped the flowers from the Garden Dreams set by inking direct to stamp with markers and then shading using blender pens. Michelle Poston recently left me a super tip for using an acrylic block for the ink pool for the blender pen. We don't have the SU acrylic blocks here yet but I thought I'd use Michelle's idea and improvise, so I scribbled with the Real Red marker on the stamp-a-ma-jig plastic sheet and then picked up the ink with the blender pen for different intensities of red.

Thanks for stopping by.

Sara xx

Back from Brussels to another birthday card

Another quick post from me today as DH and I have just got back from a weekend break in Brussels.

It's been a wonderful short break and much needed after the exams (for both of us). We went by Eurostar so there was no worrying about volcano ash clouds and I was able to bury my nose in a thriller for most of the journey - bliss. Val McDermid's latest Tony Hill book - Fever of the Bone. I always think of Robson Green when I read this character now and you get a bit more back story about his Mum and Dad in this book.

While in Brussels we went to the Atomium and we even took a couple of photos with us in them for a change lol, so that I can scrapbook them. We spent quite a bit of time in the Grand Place enjoying the local beer (well, when in Brussels ...) and people watching. I even spoiled DH by letting him watch some sport (there's this football thing on at the moment?). Of course we also had to buy some chocolates and we got them in the shape of the Mannequin Pis (the little peeing boy statue that Brussels is also famous for).

We got back home this evening to find a belated birthday card from my friend Dawn:

Thanks Dawn - love it, I can just imagine those bags filled with our crafting goodies, heehee.

Ok that's all for now, I promise to have some of my own crafting to show you next time I post :-)

Sara xx