Baskets for recent workshops and training swaps

Hope that you're all having a fun and relaxing weekend. A quick break from the monthly In Love With Stamping challenges today. They don't seem to be up on the forum yet.

I had a fantastic day at regional training yesterday with my upline Joanne, downline Jan and about another 67 demos! Hi to Ann and Ann-Marie that shared our table *waves*. Can you imagine, 70 of us in one room? It gets giddy at times ... and very loud, lol. Not sure what the nurses doing their training in the next room must have thought of us. And of course we're all very supportive of each other in our need for paper stroking, frippery and glitz, heehee. Jan and Joanne didn't do anything to reduce my ever growing shopping basket as we got to see and play with the new goodies coming up in the Mini Catalogue. I can't wait to share them with you on 1 April (a fool free zone that day on my blog).

For now I'll share the little project that I took for swapping and that we also had as the make and take at a recent workshop.

Recipe

Stamp set: Vintage Vogue

Cardstock: Rich Razzleberry, River Rock, Very Vanilla

Ink: Always Artichoke, Rich Razzleberry

3mm Ribbon: Rich Razzleberry

Other: Gold Brads

The basket is 7.5" x 7.5" Rich Razzleberry scored at 2.5" on all four sides then flipped over and scored from the corner to the intersection of the scorelines. The crop-a-dile was used to punch a hole in each corner for threading the ribbon. Adhered to each side is a 2" x 2" square of River Rock stamped with the leafy frond in Always Artichoke. The large flower was stamped three times and the Friends once onto Very Vanilla card with Rich Razzleberry. These were then cut out (or punched out with the 1-3/4" Circle). The flowers had a gold brad added in the centre and they were all popped up on dimensionals. Finally the corners were threaded with ribbon, gathered and tied in a bow.

For the swaps I also made a few different versions (I get a bit bored doing all the same).

Mother's Day version:

Easter version:

Christmas version:

And at the workshop I demonstrated the spritzer tool and the Bliss stamp set using a large version of the basket.

Large version using 12" x 12" cardstock:

The Bliss set is no longer available but I have a few extra sets to give as hostess gifts for the first 3 people that book a workshop with me. Email me to book.

Enjoy the rest of the day.

Sara xx

A blissful mojo monday challenge card

It's been a little while since I got to play along with the Mojo Monday challenge and so I made an effort this week to make time for it and of course I've used another Sale-a-bration set to inspire and tempt you, lol.

The sketch challenge this week is this:

And I used Bliss to create this:

Recipe

Stamp set: Bliss

Cardstock: River Rock, Always Artichoke, Cherry Cobbler, Marina Mist, Very Vanilla

Ink: Always Artichoke, River Rock, Cherry Cobbler, Stampin' Pastels, Versamark

DSP: Neutrals Patterns

6mm Grosgrain Ribbon: Marina Mist

Punches: Scallop Edge Border, Scallop Oval, Large Oval, 1-3/8" Circle, 1-1/4" Circle

Other: Basic Pearls, Clear EP, Mat Pack, Paper Piercer

Non-SU: Die-cut shapes

The card blank is an A6 landscape of Always Artichoke. A layer of River Rock card was stamped with the large Bliss motif alternately with Always Artichoke (stamped off once for a paler shade) and River Rock inks, using a Stamp-a-ma-jig for placement. The edges were dusted with Always Artichoke chalk before adhering to the card front. A strip of Cherry Cobbler card was punched with the Scallop Edge Border. A strip and a square of River Rock DSP were dusted around the edges with River Rock chalk on alternate sides. The strip of DSP was adhered to the Cherry Cobbler Border and the square adhered direct to a larger mat of Always Artichoke. A piece of Marine Mist ribbon was wrapped around the border before adhering to the card front and the square was adhered over the top.

The Bliss sentiment was stamped in Cherry Cobbler ink onto Very Vanilla card and punched with the Large Oval. The flower was stamped with the same ink and card and cut out. A 1-1/4" Circle was punched from Very Vanilla card and a 1-3/8" Circle was punched from Marina Mist card. Die cuts were made of Very Vanilla and Cherry Cobbler card. The die cut circle was paper pierced around the edge and all Vanilla shapes were dusted with Cherry Cobbler chalk. These shapes were layered together as shown either directly or with dimensionals. The central flower was finished with a plain Pearl. Three more Pearls were coloured using Versamark, Cherry Cobbler ink and Clear EP before adding to the front of the card.

Hope you're enjoying these Sale-a-bration samples.

Sara xx

SAB blog hop, put your feet up, grab a cuppa and have a browse

Hi and welcome to our Sale-a-bration 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 Pat for organising this.

If you've joined me from Laura then thank you for stopping by. If you're starting here then you'll be able to work your way around this loop of 9 or 10 blogs until you get back here and then you can skip to one of the other loops 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 (for example one of our girls is poorly and has had to drop out - get well soon Debbi!) 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.

Our aim is to provide you with lots of inspiration for using our Sale-a-bration sets - the sets that you can get free with a £45 order from our Idea Book and Catalogue (see the link on the right hand side menu) - and don't forget that there's no limit to the number you can qualify for, so spend £45, get one set, spend £90, get two sets etc so you can collect all four! Just email me to place your order. Hopefully today I've got a little something for everyone, I've used each SAB set and have a mix of cards, scrapbook page and 3d items, some using bright colours and some are more monochrome.

First up for you, I've made a little set of all occasion cards:

Recipe (All)

Stamp set: So Happy for You

Recipe (Butterfly)

Cardstock: Elegant Eggplant, Perfect Plum, Whisper White

Ink: Elegant Eggplant, Perfect Plum,

Punch: Butterfly

Recipe (Star)

Cardstock: Baja Breeze, Not Quite Navy, Whisper White

Ink: Baja Breeze, Not Quite Navy

Punch: Star

Recipe (Heart)

Cardstock: Blushing Bride, Rose Red, Whisper White

Ink: Blushing Bride, Rose Red

Punch: Full Heart

Recipe (Clover)

Cardstock: Wild Wasabi, Garden Green, Whisper White

Ink: Wild Wasabi, Garden Green

Punch: Small Heart, 2-step Bird

Recipe (Flower)

Cardstock: Daffodil Delight, More Mustard, Whisper White

Ink: Daffodil Delight, More Mustard

Punch: 5-petal Flower

Each card is made in the same way. A 3-1/2" square card blank of the lighter colour is matted with a 3-1/4" square of the darker colour. A 3" square of Whisper White card is stamped with the sentiment in the darker ink in the bottom right corner and then randomly with the background stamp in the lighter ink. This is adhered direct to the card front. A matching shape is punched from the lighter cardstock and popped up on dimensionals in the centre. (To get a closer match for the flower I reinserted each petal back into the punch reversed and punched again). The envelopes are stamped with the matching background stamp.

I then boxed them in a mini pizza box:

Recipe

Cardstock: Basic Black, Tangerine Tango, Whisper White

Ink: Perfect Plum, Baja Breeze, Blushing Bride, Wild Wasabi, Daffodil Delight, Basic Black

Punches: 1" Circle, 1-1/4" Circle, Small Oval, Large Oval

I used this tutorial here to make the mini pizza box in Basic Black cardstock, then matted it with Squares of Tangerine Tango and Basic Black. A square of Whisper White card was stamped with all the images from the cards. Using a marker direct to stamp I selectively stamped the "for you" sentiment and punched it out with the Small Oval. It was adhered direct to a Large Oval of Tangerine Tango and popped up on dimensionals on the box top. Tangerine Tango strips were adhered to the front and sides of the box.

Using the Punch Bunch set I made a little Post-it note key chain to keep in my handbag:

Recipe

Stamp set: Punch Bunch

Cardstock: Early Espresso, Very Vanilla

Ink: Early Espresso

3mm Taffeta Ribbon: Early Espresso, Very Vanilla

1cm Taffeta Ribbon: Very Vanilla

Other: Crystal Effects

Non-SU: Keyring, Mini Post-it notes

About a third of the mini Post-it notes were separated off and wrapped with Early Espresso card. A small mat of Very Vanilla card was stamped with the owl in Early Espresso ink and then adhered to the cover of the notes. The eyes of the owl were covered in Crystal Effects to make them shine (you can just see that in the photo). A hole was punched through the "book" with the Crop-a-dile, a keyring fastened through and the ribbons tied onto the keyring.

I think the Bliss set is ideal for scrapbooking wedding photos as well as using on cards and went with a sepia tone photo for this:

Recipe

Stamp set: Bliss

Cardstock: Crumb Cake, Early Espresso, Very Vanilla

Ink: Crumb Cake, Early Espresso

Punches: Scallop Oval, Large Oval

Other: Basic Pearls

I used the stamp-a-ma-jig to position the large stamp to create the background. The sepia tinted photo was matted onto Early Espresso card and adhered direct to the page. Using the rock and roll technique with Crumb Cake and Early Espresso inks I stamped the flower three times and the butterfly once onto Very Vanilla card and cut them out. Small pearls were added to the centres of the flowers. The sentiment was stamped with Early Espresso onto Very Vanilla card, punched with the Large Oval and matted onto a Scallop Oval of Early Espresso card. These elements were then arranged around the photo to further frame it.

Finally, as part of my MIL's birthday gift I created this packaging:

Recipe

Stamp set: Sweet Summer

Cardstock: Basic Black, Melon Mambo, Whisper White

Ink: Versamark, Black Stazon, White Gel Pen, Melon Mambo, Pretty in Pink, Basic Black

Punch: Petal Card

3mm Taffeta Ribbon: Basic Black

Other: White EP, Filigree Brad

Non-SU: Velcro

I used Carol's quirky little box tutorial here for my box. The box sides are made with Basic Black card and were stamped with the leafy stems in Versamark and then heat embossed with White EP. The full flower heads were stamped twice in Black Stazon and then coloured with markers before cutting out then popping up on dimensionals at the top of each leafy stem. Two Petal Cards were punched from Melon Mambo. One was adhered to the base of the box. The other had the small butterfly stamped with Black Stazon on one peta and was coloured with the White Gel pen. This was used to indicate the opening for the box. A hole was punched in the centre of the lid using the Crop-a-dile and a Filigree brad attached with a loop of Black taffeta ribbon. The back petal was adhered to the back of the box. A sliver of velcro was used to fasten the box lid at the front. You'll have to stop back another day to see what was inside it.

Well I hope that you've enjoyed my creations and I'll pass you on now to Alison. She has some wonderful step cards to show you.

If you'd like to look at the other loops, then here are the links:

Loop 2

Loop 3

Loop 4

Don't forget that if you want to place an order to get your free set then just email me.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

Sara xx

An elegant card of pure Bliss

Carrying on with a little inspiration for using the fabulous, free, Sale-a-bration sets, today I'm using just two of the five Bliss stamps.

This is a really simple but elegant card, suitable for a wedding or anniversary.

Recipe

Stamp set: Bliss (get this set of 5 stamps with a £45 order - details here)

Cardstock: Perfect Plum, Very Vanilla

Ink: Perfect Plum

DSP: Lap of Luxury

Punches: Scallop Trim Corner, Scallop Trim, Scallop Oval, Large Oval

3mm Taffeta Ribbon: Very Vanilla

Other: Basic Pearls

The card blank is a 5" square of Perfect Plum, matted with Lap of Luxury DSP. The large damask motif was stamped with Perfect Plum ink onto Very Vanilla card and the top corners punched with the Scallop Trim Corner. This was adhered direct to the DSP layer. A narrow strip of Perfect Plum card was punched with the Scallop Trim and wrapped with 3mm Very Vanilla card before adhering over the join between DSP and card. The Bliss sentiment was stamped with Perfect Plum ink onto Very Vanilla card and punched with the Large Oval then popped up on dimensionals onto a Scallop Circle of Perfect Plum card. This was then popped up again on dimensionals on the bottom centre of the card. It was finished by adding a few Basic Pearls and a Very Vanilla taffeta bow.

Thanks for stopping by.

Sara xx