Pretty Thanks

Hi there

Before we get onto today's project, I need to apologise for an 'oopsie' with my blog on Sunday night. I had my CASE-ing the Catty blog post scheduled, but then on Saturday afternoon I was whisked away for the weekend for my birthday. I had 10 minutes notice to pack some clothes and as you can imagine I forgot all about my scheduled post, which I hadn't written yet. Anyway, that is a lesson for the future, lol. 

Now onto the project I have to share today, which is all about thanks. I love dressing up small thank you gifts to make them special. I've made some tags that could be added to a card or a small gift. Of course, you could change the greeting for a birthday rather than thank you.

I have used the second largest of the Lots of Labels Framelits as the base of my tag and stamped one of the flower sprays from the 'Wild about Flowers' in Old Olive ink. The flower heads are added in a second step and I've used the pretty Flirty Flamingo ink. A flagged banner is the base for the stamped greeting that I have punched out, sponged and popped up. It comes from the retired 'Petite Pairs' stamp set, still a favourite as it has many small greetings.  I popped a hole in the top of the tag and threaded some retired Flirty Flamingo ribbon through and tied it with white Baker's Twine. I've finished with some small pearls on the banner.

I have added one of finished tags to this customer thank you gift that I have put into one of the gorgeous gold Striped Treat Bags. Doesn't it look sweet? 

 

Project Details
Stamps	Wild About Flowers, Petite Pairs (retired)
Card stock & Papers	Whisper White
Ink	Old Olive, Flirty Flamingo
Accessories	Pearls Basic Jewels, White Baker's Twine, Flirty Flamingo Ruched ribbon (retired), Striped Treat bags
Tools	Lots of Labels Framelits, Big Shot, 1/8" Hole punch, Large Oval punch (retired), Dimensionals, Sponge dauber

Thanks for looking!

A Big Birthday

Hi there

I've got a masculine birthday card to share with you today. Mum's husband John has just turned 80, so I wanted to make a special card to recognise this fabulous milestone. John is a wonderfully kind and caring man and he looks after Mum so well. He is also a fabulous handyman and can fix just about anything, so I thought the retired 'Nailed It' stamp set would be perfect for his card.

I have chosen the Bridge Fold as it has a lot of presence without being too fussy. This is a larger size card that requires a custom envelope and extra postage, but it is worth it for this special occasion. The finished size when folded flat is 15.5cm x 21.5cm (6 1/8" x 8 1/2").

The base card is Real Red and the first matte is Pacific Point and the background is one of the wood grain designs from the Wood Textures Designer Paper stack.  I have stamped the tools on Silver Foil with Stazon Ink and die cut them with the coordinating framelits. I stamped them again on Whisper White with Memento Tuxedo Black ink and used the Stampin' Blends alcohol marks to colour the handles. I had to use a colour matched Copic for the Pacific Point screwdriver. I fussy cut the handles and added them to the die cut Silver Foil tools.

For the centrepiece I have die cut the 'happy birthday' in Pacific Point, Silver Foil and Real Red card stock and layered them to up the wow factor and complement the silver in the tools and trim.

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I have put the writing panel on the centre back of the card, using more of the images and die cuts from the 'Nailed It' stamp set and coordinating framelits to decorate it. The greeting is from one of my favourite and unfortunately retired stamp sets 'Balloon Adventures'.

The card is folded toward the right to make it flat. You can see the embossed foil panel that wasn't really visible in the first photo, that matches the bridge across the front that the '80' is mounted on.

I used the Envelope Punch Board to make a presentation envelope from a 12" x 12" piece of Pacific Point card stock, as I am pretty sure he will want to keep it. I then popped it into a standard C5 envelope to post.

Project Details
Stamps	Nailed It (retired), Balloon Adventures (retired)
Card stock & Papers	Pacific Point, Real Red, Whisper White, Silver Foil, Wood Textures DSP
Ink	Stazon, Memento Tuxedo Black, Real Red, Pacific Point
Accessories	Metallic Enamel Shapes
Tools	Hexagon Dynamic TIEF, Build It Framelits, Large Numbers Framelits, Happy Birthday Thinlits, Big Shot, Tombow Liquid Adhesive, Stampin' Blends Alcohol Markers, Copic Markers, Envelope Punch Board

If you would like any further information about this card, please get in touch.

Thanks for looking!

CASE-ing the Catty - Catalogue Covers & Host Sets

Hi there

At CASE-in the Catty this week, we are taking inspiration from the covers of the Annual and Holiday Catalogues as well as the Host sets that you can purchase with Stampin' Rewards.

You may have come from visiting Sandra's blog, but if you are visiting me, you can start your journey here and continue by clicking on the buttons at the bottom of the post. 

This week, I'm CASE-ing the super cute card in the sample photo above. Aren't those little birds adorable? They are from a Host set in the Annual Catalogue (page 221) called 'Feathery Friends'. It is a set of 8 stamps in either clear or wood mount. You can purchase this set with your Stampin' Rewards for a special host-only price when you have an order totalling $250 or more before shipping. It can be your personal order or the cumulative orders from a Stampin' party.  In case you haven't seen it, this is the stamp set.

 I loved this card as soon as I saw it in the catalogue and now I get to put my spin on it. These line images are quick to colour and you could use Watercolour Pencils, Stampin' Write markers, Blender Pen or Aquapainter and ink pads. However, an even better option is the new Stampin' Blends alcohol markers that will be available for purchase from 1 November 2017. With a brush tip and fine tip, they are perfect for the small details in these images. The ink goes on so smoothly and you only need a very light touch to get amazing coverage.

I've changed up the colours for my card, with a Pink Pirouette card base that has been stamped with the large curved flower in Pink Pirouette ink for a subtle tone on tone effect. Next comes a Delicate White Doily, the flagged Pool Party banner and the large stitched oval that has a Bermuda Bay scallop trim on each side. I have stamped the birds on Whisper White card stock with the Memento Tuxedo Black ink that is recommended for use with the Stampin' Blends alcohol markers. I selected 4 colours - Light and Dark Pink Pirouette, Dark Pool Party and Light Bermuda Bay to colour the images.

You can see in this closeup, I have done a little bit of shading on the wings and the larger flowers, but it doesn't need much. I fussy cut the birds and the flower and popped them up on the branch from the Seasonal Layers Thinlits that was cropped from Crumb Cake card stock. I have added a little thank you greeting and punched it out with the Classic Label punch, but it would also be perfect for a birthday or friendship card too.

For the inside, I have the writing panel sitting on a Pool Party mat and at the base is a strip of Blushing Bride washi, which blends in quite well. I have stamped and coloured the curved stem image and popped up another fussy cut flower, coloured in Pink Pirouette this time. I love this soft and pretty colour combo.

Finally, here is a view from the top.

 

Project Details
Stamps	Feathery Friends, One Big Meaning
Card stock & Papers	Whisper White, Pink Pirouette, Pool Party, Bermuda Bay, Crumb Cake
Ink	Memento Tuxedo Black, Bermuda Bay, Pink Pirouette
Accessories	Basics Pack 1 Washi, Delicate White Doilies, Metallic Enamel Shapes
Tools	Stitched Shapes Framelits, Seasonal Layers Thinlits, Big Shot, Classic Label Punch, Dimensionals, Stampin' Blends Markers (Light and Dark Pink Pirouette, Dark Pool Party, Light Bermuda Bay)

Now it's time to click on the Next button below to hop over to see what Rachel has to inspire you this week. 

We would love you to join us with your CASE of the Catalogue Covers or Host Sets using our Facebook group. Click on this link or the image below to go there. The first time you will need to click on the 'Join Group' button at the top. Once you have been added to the group, you can go ahead and post your creation and you do not need to have a blog.

 Thanks for visiting today!

The Heart of Christmas - Week 21

Hi there

Welcome to week 21 of Christmas inspiration from the Art with Heart Stampin' Up! team. I finally managed to get my act together to participate this week. I have had my first play with the 'Good Tidings' stamp set and I really love the large greeting and the beautiful holly image. Each part of the holly (both large and small) is a two-step stamping process. However, in my opinion I don't think you need the second step with the berries or the stem. I then the berries get a bit 'muddied', but then I like the clean look.  

 

I wanted a nice vibrant green for my holly, as that I what I remember of the real plant, so I have chosen Emerald Envy and Tranquil Tide. The Tranquil tide provides the darker shading in the image. The berries were added in Real Red in and the stem is stamped last in Soft Suede ink.  I did find it takes a couple of goes to get the lining up spot on, so I recommend you practice first. 

         

I stamped the large greeting in Basic Gray Archival ink on thick Whisper White and cut it into a flagged banner and added a narrower and longer banner in Gold Glimmer underneath. The 'joy'was stamped in Real Red and fussy cut and popped up for extra dimension. To construct the card, I layered some of the black star design from the 'Merry Little Christmas' designer paper pack onto a Real Red card base. I positioned the banner to the right side and added the fussy cut holly. I stamped and cut out some extra berries and popped them up on the small holly. Once you have the holly stamp and fussy cut, the card comes together quickly.

For the inside, I have stamped the smaller greeting from 'Good Tidings' in the centre of the writing panel in Basic Gray Archival ink. At the base there is a strip of retired holly washi, topped with the narrow gold washi from the Year of Cheer Speciality set. I have added one the small holly sprays in the top corner to finish it off and then added the panel to a black mat.

All of the new products in the Holiday Catalogue are available to purchase from my Online Store now.

Project Details
Stamps	Good Tidings
Card stock & Papers	Real Red, Basic Black, Whisper White, Merry Little Christmas DSP, Gold Glimmer
Ink	Basic Gray Archival, Emerald Envy Tranquil Tide, Real Red, Soft Suede
Accessories	Year of Cheer Specialty Washi
Tools	Banners Framelits (retired), Big Shot, Dimensionals

If you would like to see more Christmas inspiration, hop over to Claire's blog to see who else is participating this week

Thanks for visiting today!

CASE-ing the Catty - Favourite Big Shot Project

Hi there

At CASE-in the Catty this week, we are taking inspiration from our favourite Big Shot project from the  Holiday Catalogue.

You may have come from visiting Megan's blog, but if you are visiting me, you can start your journey here and continue by clicking on the buttons at the bottom of the post. 

     

The 'Night in Bethlehem' bundle is a beautiful combination of traditional Christmas images and stunning edgelit dies. The card at the top of the inspiration photo above jumped out at me when I first looked at the Holiday Catalogue, so that is what I am CASE-ing this week.

I have stayed close to the design of the sample card, as I really love the Bethlehem landscape. I started my art piece with Soft Sky card stock and then stamped the stars in Versamark and heat embossed with clear embossing powder. As you can see, this results in a very subtle effect, but I quite like it.  I have used a sponge dauber to create a soft sky line using Pool Party, Island Indigo and finally Night of Navy ink at the top. With the sponging completed, I heat embossed the greeting in silver at the top. I have found that sponging over silver embossing causes it to lose its lustre; just ensure your ink is fully dry before you run the Embossing Buddy over the top. 

 

With the background completed, I have die cut one each of the two edgelits in the set in Silver Foil and Night of Navy card stock. You will need to use your Precision Plate to get a crisp finish without any marks from the small holes in the die that are used to poke it out. I found that the die cuts came away very cleanly and easily. As you can see in the photo, I have popped up the Night of Navy layer on 1mm foam pads for extra dimension. A large rhinestone in the large star finishes it off. The finished art panel was popped up onto the thick Whisper White card base.

 

For the inside, I have a mat of Island Indigo card stock and I have sponged the top of the writing panel with Pool Party and Island Indigo for a soft skyline. When the ink was dry I stamped the small stars in Versamark and heat embossed in silver. A strip of the narrow silver washi at the base provides grounding for Mary and Joseph and the Shepherd images.  They were stamped in Night of Navy and cropped with the matching dies.

 

 

Project Details
Stamps	Night in Bethlehem
Card stock & Papers	Whisper White, Soft Sky, Island Indigo, Night of Navy, Silver Foil
Ink	Soft Sky, Pool Party, Island Indigo, Night of Navy, Versamark
Accessories	Year of Cheer Specialty Washi, Rhinesone Basic Jewels
Tools	Bethlehem Edgelits, Big Shot, Clear & Silver EP, Heat gun, Dimensionals

Now it's time to click on the Next button below to hop over to see the lovely project Fi has for you this week. 

We would love you to join us with your CASE of a favourite Big Shot project from the Holiday Catalogue using our Facebook group. Click on this link or the image below to go there. The first time you will need to click on the 'Join Group' button at the top. Once you have been added to the group, you can go ahead and post your creation and you do not need to have a blog.

 Thanks for visiting today!