Mix It Up Monday: Festive Fireplace birthday card

It’s Mix It Up Monday again and today I have a birthday card for my friend and downline, Donna. Like me, Donna loves cats so when I was stamping with her recently, I sneakily stamped out a few of these cats for her birthday card. They were ably coloured by my daughter, who also added the bow; there’s no way I could have drawn that. 

The concept in my head was cats sitting on a brick wall but I hadn’t accounted for the scale issues; the bricks from the embossing folder are way too big for these little cats. So I tried rolling it through the Big Shot twice, offsetting the folder the second time to create the effect of smaller bricks/stones. This almost had the desired effect, but the first embossed lines were flattened by the second rolling. Nothing ventured…

The colour combination - which, of course, comes from my In Color charts - is a good one but I did bend the rules slightly with the cotton paper, which is actually Crushed Curry. Ah well, my blog: my rules to bend. I finished the flowers off with just a small scribbled of black marker in the centre.

Festive Fireplace Photopolymer Stamp Set [139754]	Tin Of Cards Photopolymer Stamp Set [138946]	Brick Wall Textured Impressions Embossing Folder [138288]	Itty Bitty Accents Punch Pack [133787]	Pool Party A4 Card Stock [124391]
So Saffron A4 Card Stock [108611]	Tip Top Taupe A4 Cardstock [138343]	Whisper White A4 Card Stock [106549]	Project Life Journaling Pens [135304]	Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad [132708]
Cherry On Top Cotton Paper Assortment [138308]	2015-2017 In Color Stampin' Write Markers [138333]	Subtles Stampin' Write Markers [131263]

Links by TheseAreMyStamps.com

Mix It Up Monday with a retro vibe

It’s Mix It Up Monday and, once again, I’m pushing the deadline right into the day. One day, when the house is straight again, I’ll get back to more efficient service, honest!

Today’s colour combo has quite a retro vibe so out came my “You’re So Vintage” stamp set as a starting point. As you can see, it didn’t make the final cut!

I tried to create the look of a vintage print using the Summer Silhouettes stamp set. I needed something tiny to put in the gaps and ended up doodling some little dots with my marker pens; very simple, but quite effective I think. 

I scrunched up a strip of cotton paper was very tightly, then opened it out for a nice creased effect, then created rough pleats along the back of the stamped strip, using Tear and Tape to hold it in place. 

You’re So Vintage was just too big for this card in the end, so I resorted to Tin of Cards; a really useful stamp set to have, even if you don’t have the tin kit. So there you have it… there would have been some white dots on the scallop circle, too, if I’d been able to find my chalk marker!

Summer Silhouettes Clear Stamp Set [126447]	Tin Of Cards Photopolymer Stamp Set [138946]	Pearl Basic Jewels Embellishments [119247]	Punch Corner Project Life [135346]	Itty Bitty Accents Punch Pack [133787]
2-3/8" Circle Scallop Punch [118874]	1-3/4" Circle Punch [119850]	Pool Party 1/4" Cotton Ribbon [134568]	2015-2017 In Color Stampin' Write Markers [138333]	Pool Party Stampin' Write Marker [131904]
Wild Wasabi Classic Stampin' Pad [126959]	Watermelon Wonder Classic Stampin' Pad [138323]	Pool Party Classic Stampin' Pad [126982]	Cherry On Top Cotton Paper Assortment [138308]	Watermelon Wonder A4 Cardstock [138341]
Very Vanilla A4 Card Stock [106550]	Wild Wasabi A4 Card Stock [111850]	Pool Party A4 Card Stock [124391]

Links by TheseAreMyStamps.com

Cotton paper fringing with I Think You're Great

This card isn’t a million miles from this one, but I adapt it to showcase some new products at my Catalogue Launch Party.

The first is the cotton paper which is like nothing we’ve ever had before. I’ve already shown you how you can make flowers which hold their shape, but here I’ve also used it to create some fringing. Because it’s so lightweight, it won’t add lots of bulk to your project, which is always a bonus. 

The other product I wanted to show off is the thick Whisper White cardstock. The photo doesn’t show it off at all, of course, but it does mean you can make card bases from it, which are nice and sturdy and stay standing up! 

Stamping is on the back-burner here at the moment, unfortunately, as we are now a week into our building project. So far, it’s not impacted our everyday life too much, as all the activity is taking place outside, but our belongings have been squished up into a smaller space, and stamping time is very limited.  But I’ll keep blogging… it’s a good incentive to squeeze in some crafting now and again!

PS: Just realised I can add product names to the table! Hope you like :) 

I Think You're Great Wood-Mount Stamp Set [138712]	Cherry On Top Cotton Paper Assortment [138308]	Crushed Curry Classic Stampin' Pad [131173]	Bermuda Bay Classic Stampin' Pad [131171]
Whisper White A4 Thick Cardstock [140490]	Whisper White A4 Card Stock [106549]	White 1-1/4" (3.2 Cm) Jute Ribbon [137904]	Fringe Scissors [133325]

Links by TheseAreMyStamps.com

Awesomely Artistic with cotton paper flower

Here’s another project made with Awesomely Artistic and this one is (very) loosely based on the catalogue sample, shown below. That’s what happens when you CASE something without the picture in front of you!

Image © Stampin’ Up!®

This cotton paper will prove a fun addition to your craft stash. It’s soooooo lightweight, it almost floats away, but it holds its shape nicely, so I’m confident this flower will stay put.

I like the Watermelon Wonder (there, I said it!) with the starkness of the black and brightness of Bermuda Bay, and the Candy Dots finish it off nicely. 

138694	139420	133704	138425
138325	138323	132708	131286
106550	138308	127811	130931

Links by TheseAreMyStamps.com