Sneak Peek: Window Shopping

You are going to LOVE this bundle, I promise. This die and greeting stamp are just a very small part of a set which will prove to be incredibly versatile.

For now, take a look at this CASE of a catalogue project. I painted some colourful splodges on some watercolour paper. Honestly, they looked AWFUL and I considered not using them.

But when I taped them into position with some hidden washi tape and placed the die-cut piece on top (using the Window Box Thinlits dies), that’s when the magic happened. I finished both cards off with a greeting from the Window Shopping stamp set and some randomly scattered sequins. Job done.

Hip Hip Hooray gift box with Wildflower Fields FREE paper

I love this Wildflower Fields Designer Series Paper, which is FREE during Sale-a-Bration with a £45 order – and it seems my customers love it, too, as I unpacked several packs of it this week!

Top tip: The Farmers Market cardstock assortment is the perfect accompaniment to this DSP.

Here I’ve used one of the prettiest sheets of paper with the Gift Box Punch Board to make a box, which I topped with a bow created with the Envelope Punch Board and a tag made with the fun new Party Pop-Up Thinlits.  

What I realised when making the tag was that there’s not a lot of space to write on the back because it’s full of holes, so I took some Hello Honey cardstock, drew around the die and cut it freehand, then offset it to give it a brightly coloured background, joining with Dimensionals to give it some, er... dimension. The Old Olive pieces are simply retrieved from a previous project and fitted into the gaps. The easiest way to do this is to put some double-sided tape on the back of the Blackberry Bliss and simply press them in to secure. 

Hope you like it! And I hope I can bear to give this away!

Party Pop-Up Thinlits Dies [140620] £27.00

Gift Box Punch Board [135863] £18.00

Envelope Punch Board [133774] £18.00

Wildflower Fields Designer Series Paper [141022] £0.00

Farmers Market A4 Cardstock Assortment Pack [139016] £6.50

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Berry Basket with chalkboard technique

I’m back from a really busy weekend… which all began with a lovely Stampin’ Up!® party in Belper, where I caught up with lots of people I hadn’t seen for a while (and gorged myself on rocky road!). 

The hostess had requested embossing as a technique but then managed to pull in a crowd of 16, so I decided this would be best confined to the demonstration.  So I decided to show them the chalkboard technique. I have to say at this point that the new chalkboard paper is absolutely perfect for this, and I do have some, so I don’t know what made me use ordinary Basic Black for my project. 

My pictures are a little lacking I’m afraid, but the original has now gone to the hostess, as a thank you for having me (and for pulling in such a big crowd!). I made this little basket with the Berry Basket die which is so very, very cute and will come in handy for all kinds of occasions. It’s important that you follow the instructions the first time you assemble it, which is why I wanted to demo it. It’s a great die for using up all those strips of DSP and cardstock you’ve been saving - these are perfect for making contrasting trim around the top of the basket; the die makes scalloped and straight trim so you can choose. 

My project is a sort of CASE of this project by Amy Koenders, with the addition of the tag. Naturally, Amy’s project is neater than mine – no doubt because she didn’t pack it in a trolley, then remember she hadn’t photographed it so fished it out again and realise it was a little worse for wear already, before even leaving the house! 

The chalkboard technique is really simple. All you do is emboss some words (I used Blushing Bride embossing powder) and then add some chalky effects with your white ink pad. Another way is to use the Embossing Buddy (which helps prevent stray powder from sticking to your card) to add a chalky look to your finished project. 

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Celebrate your Big Day with cake!

Here’s the second Make & Take from Saturday’s Launch Party. Lovely fondant colours reminiscent of the icing on a cake. The “celebrate” is paper pieced to make it really pop.

This stamp set could be yours FREE when you spend £45 before 31st March. Just click the Sale-a-Bration banner at the top of the page or, if you’re on a mobile, go here for all the details.

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Calmly Bearing Gifts

It s the Christmas countdown and I only have a couple of cards left to show you. I do have some new samples from the Spring/Summer catty but the pictures I took are even worse than this one! I’d forgotten how difficult it was to get a decent picture when you’re in the darkest part of the year.

While I’m here I’d just like to remind you that I am now taking bookings for TWO events...

Launch Party
At my Launch Party, you’ll get to see samples, demonstrations and enjoy Make & Takes with products from both the new Spring/Summer catalogue and from the forthcoming Sale-a-Bration promotion. These are always relaxed events, with the odd game and, of course, cake and prizes. The cost is £7 (discount for Virtual Hostess Club members) and you can read all about it, and register, HERE.  Please book soon as the event is on 10th January, which isn’t actually that far away! But what better way to start the New Year than with some crafting?

All-Day Craftathon
My All-Day Craftathon is for those of you who like to get your teeth into a project. We’ll be making several exciting projects and playing with some fun techniques. You’ll get a generous kit to use on the day, with leftovers to take home afterwards to continue your crafting. All materials are supplied (please bring your own adhesives and basic craft kit) and brand new products will feature strongly. This event is more than half full already, so please don’t delay booking as I’d hate you to be disappointed. The cost is £30 which I know isn’t something you want to fork out before Christmas, so you can secure your place now with just £5. All details, and booking, are HERE.

You can also read about and book for either of these events using the buttons at the top of this page, or the links in your most recent newsletter. Not on my mailing list? Click the link on this page to join!

And now... remember that polar bear card at the top of the page? Here’s the recipe...

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Links by TheseAreMyStamps.com

Around the World Stampin' Challenge - Tap Tap Tap

It’s time for another Around the World Stampin’ Challenge! This time, for AW25, the theme is gratitude, which I had to confess threw me for a while, until I realised that all I had to to was make a thank you card! 

Here is my rather high-maintenance effort; I threw everything at this card and it’s only now that I look at it next to the challenge image that I see I may have subconsciously mirrored the background of that photo!

I began by brayering a piece of Whisper White cardstock, building up the colours using Crumb Cake and Baked Brown Sugar at one end, and Pool Party and Bermuda Bay at the other. I love the look of brayering and don’t do it often enough. 

But brayering wasn’t the end of this background; next I stamped on top using Gorgeous Grunge splatters in Whisper White, and some subtle images from the same set in Island Indigo, stamped off so they weren’t too harsh. 

It still wasn’t enough; I liked the look of the typewriter key stamp from Tap Tap Tap but thought it would be too big on this project, so found the similar image from Kinda Eclectic and used that instead. 

I still wanted more from this background, so I finally had to decide which was the top so that I could emboss it. My Big Shot is quite tight, and I forgot to account for this so some cracking did occur, but I don’t mind as it fits in with the grungey look of this card. 

After colouring the typewriter, I cut it out, then stamped the sentiment separately. I hand-drew a longer piece of paper around it, cut it out and stuck it on; you can see the join if you get really close!

Hope you like it! Why not have a go at the challenge yourself? Just visit the Around the World Stampin’ Challenges blog for more details! 

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