Cat or dog? One card, two pets...

Whether you’re a cat fan or a dog fan, there’s a stamp set for you in the Spring/Summer catalogue, and both are really cute.

Here I’ve made the same card design using Nine Lives and Happy Tails; I just changed the layer colour to match the Pumpkin Pie of the ginger cat the Real Red of the dog collar. It’s even the same piece of Designer Series Paper; just flip it over to get polka dots or stripes.

The dog is coloured with Stampin' Blends... and also stamped with the cute patches which come with the set. I stamped and coloured a batch of these, so you’ll be seeing him again. The background is stamped in Crumb Cake, but stamped off for a lighter effect.

The cat is simply stamped in Pumpkin Pie, then stamped on top with the tabby-effect stamp. You have to get your eye in but it’s not too difficult and you can always fill in any white areas with a Blender Pen and the ink from your ink pad lid. The little bow is a two-step stamp, too; I stamped off in Blueberry Bushel to get the background.

As a bonus project, I made this little cat box. It's a slider, so when you pull the ribbon, the chocolate slides out with it.  As you can see, this is no tabby cat... there’s another stamp within the set that enables you to create a pretty tortoiseshell, or a lovely ginger and white, as here.

Stamparatus Skills Workshop projects

Saturday was my much-anticipated Stamparatus Skills Workshop. I have been waiting for Sale-a-Bration to offer this class so that everyone could use the same stamp set. Guests each received a Stamparatus and the Hello Cupcake set in their kit and we made these two cards, using seven amazing Stamparatus techniques.

If you’d like the tutorials for these two projects, detailing all the Stamparatus techniques, simply order a Stamparatus and the Hello Cupcake stamp set from me before the end of February and I'll send them to you.

You can order by emailing me or shop at my online store using the host code VSQ3YGCB

Cat or dog? Nine Lives or Happy Tails?

The two stamp sets in the new Spring/Summer catalogue which caused me the most excitement are these... Nine Lives and Happy Tails. At last we have a stamp set to go with the lovely cat punch, and now there’s a dog punch, too.

I made two very simple cards in the same design, so appeal to both the cat people and the dog people. Which one is your favourite?

Valentine cats - reversed image

Here’s another way you can use a reverse image – to create a cute catty Valentine’s card. This was my first attempt at mirror stamping and I couldn’t believe my luck when the cats ended up positioned so perfectly close together.

To find out how to do this, using the Stamparatus and a silicone sheet, please check out my video on my Facebook page.

Video tutorial: Reverse stamping with Nine Lives cats

This is such a fun technique, I can’t understand why I haven’t tried it before. It worked first time and blew my mind, so I knew it would have the same effect when I demoed the technique at a party on Friday evening. This little box uses the new Nine Lives stamp set, which co-ordinates with the existing cat punch. For this cute project, I stamped the cats on both sides of the cardstock so, no matter which way you turn it, the cats are facing you.

Simple Stamping with Love What You Do

I have started new Cuppa & Card sessions at Bugs Tucker Cafe in Borrowash, near Derby. These are the cards we made at our first session. They use a lovely, spring-like colour palette, with blender pens to colour in the images.

Home to Roost Sale-a-Bration stamp set

This is my other joint favourite stamp set from Sale-a-Bration. It's called Home to Roost and we made this card with it on Crafty Friday last week.

The images are stamped in Crumb Cake, then coloured using ink pad lids and Blender Pens. Calypso Coral for this handsome cockerel's comb, Pool Party and Bermuda Bay for his tummy and tail feathers, Crushed Curry and Mango Melody for his back and chest.

By the Bay Sale-a-Bration stamp set

This was my joint first choice out of the Sale-a-Bration brochure... luckily my order meant I could earn more than one freebie.

Every £45 you spend during SAB (Jan-Mar) earns you a freebie from the brochure. I highly recommend By the Way, used here on a product-heavy card which we made at Crafty Friday.

Look out for two carryover items; the Sprig Punch and Braided Trim, both still available from the Autumn/Winter catalogue.

Bloom by Bloom one-sheet wonder

A one-sheet wonder was just the ticket to create a big batch of these for my team. My tip for a one-sheet wonder is this: Start with the largest stamps in the palest colours, and work your way down to the smallest stamps in the lightest colours. You can then use the tiny stamps to fill in any gaps and balance out the colours to they are relatively evenly distributed.

This is the Bloom by Bloom stamp set and I love its bold imagery. Even if you’re not keen on bright colours, don't dismiss this set as it looks fab in subtles, too!

Happy Tails bundle card and picture frame

How cute is this little dog? You’re going to love him - you can stamp patches on him, like I've done here, leave him plain, colour to match your own pooch, or add the spotty image to turn him into a Dalmatian. Cute, eh? And yes, there’s a punch!

Home to Roost Sale-a-Bration stamp set

I’m back! Not feeling 100% but definitely getting there at last. I’ve been dabbling with some cardmaking and came up with this, using the new Home to Roost stamp set. It’s a Sale-a-Bration item, so available FREE with a £45 order. I have to say, it’s one of my favourite SAB sets from this year’s brochure.

Yes, I’ve used the Tin Tile embossing folder and the Braided Linen Trim from the Autumn/Winter catalogue but the great news is that these two items are both carrying over, so you can still order them. Enjoy!

Spring/Summer catalogue and Sale-a-Bration are here!

The Spring/Summer catalogue is here! 

Click here to download the PDF

Please click here to shop online

Sale-a-Bration is here, too!
Choose a free item from this catalogue every time you spend £45
(£90 for selected larger items)

Click here to download the PDF of the brochure

Happy New Year

Am easing myself in gently. Although I’m on the mend, I haven’t had the energy/inclination to create, so have nothing to show you just yet. But I will soon, I promise.