Build-A-Brad

Good evening!!

Sorry its been a while since I last blogged its been a bit manic around here! We are still carless and both been busy with work, begging lifts and then I've come down with the lurgy! Just what I needed! The last couple days I've felt like I got dragged through the hedge backwards, and then run over by a truck! 

Anyway I've been trying to take life a little slower the last few days and thought I'd sit and blog for a bit! 

Have you seen the new brads in the Spring/Summer Catalgoue? They're builder brads and I love them! So I have a couple cards (using similar materials) for you. 

Stamp Set: Curly Cute, Hearts a Flutter

Ink: Melon Mambo, Daffodil Delight, Lucky Limeade

Cardstock: Whisper White, Crumb Cake

DSP: Sunshine & Sprinkles

Punch: Itty Bitty

Big Shot: Hearts a Flutter Framelits

Accessories: Designer Build-A-Brad, Paper Doily

Extras: White Gel Pen

Stamp Set: Hearts a Flutter, That's The Ticket

Ink: Daffodil Delight, Baja Breeze

Cardstock: Crumb Cake, Whisper White

DSP: Sunshine & Sprinkles

Punch: Itty Bitty, Ticket

Big Shot: Hearts a Flutter 

Accessories: Build-A-Brad, Paper Doilies

Ribbon: Melon Mambo Striped Organdy

So the designer build a brads comprise of the metal scalloped brad backs and some clear domes with adesive backing. You simply punch a little piece of patterned paper and stick it in the centre, add the dome to the top and your brad is finished. The little bit of paper in there means it'll fit pretty much any style card you want! I think they look gorgeous! Do you like them?

Have a great evening! 

Amanda xx

Butterflies Galore!

Good morning! 

Monday already? Doesn't the weekend go fast!! Did you all have a good weekend? I had a craft table at a Christian charity sale on Saturday morning and went to see Les Miserables in the afternoon with my parents. It was good, don't get me wrong but, I think everyone had been telling me how amazing and brilliant it was that it didn't meet my expectations. Pity. I didn't even cry...oh well! 

On with today's share... This is another card I made quite a while back using the Papillon Potpourri stamp set and just never got around to showing you! 

Stamp Set: Papillon Potpourri, Curly Cute

Ink: Rich Razzleberry, Pumpkin Pie, Regal Rose, Pacific Point, Tempting Turquoise, Daffodil Delight, Lucky Limeade

Cardstock: Whisper White, Rich Razzleberry, Pumpkin Pie, Regal Rose, Pacific Point, Daffodil Delight, Lucky Limeade

Accessories: Brights Glimmer Brads. Designer Printed Brads, Brights Buttons, Rhinestones

Punch: Elegant Butterfly, Itty Bitty

Ribbon: Rich Razzleberry Stitched Grosgrain

I love all the bright colours here! The way these butterflies are arranged in rows reminds me of those butterfly displays you sometimes find in curiosity houses or stately homes (you know the kind I mean, where they are all pinned to the board and framed). 

The wings of the stamped butterflies do stand up a bit but you cant really see it here. Behind each stamped image is a solid punched butterfly for an extra pop of colour. Its very effective, just a pity you can't see it very well here. I also love the use of lots of different embellishments, I have a tendency to get a bit over protective and precious about brads and buttons so to have this many on a card is very special but it works beautifully! 

What do you think? Like my extravagance? 

Have a wonderful Monday! 

Amanda xx

Hello, Sale-A-Bration!

Hello!! 

Today is the first day of Stampin' Up!'s biggest promotion of the year, Sale-A-Bration!! 

This year its even bigger and better than ever before! There are literally tons of products to choose from! 

It runs from January 22nd - March 22nd! How can you earn free SAB products I hear you say? Well, its super simple! For every £45 you spend you can choose one of the free stamp sets/paper/embellishments/punch from the exclusive SAB list! 

Right, onto today's project! I've got a fun and quick card I've had lying around here for a while now and kept meaning to post but what with Christmas and forgetting to post, it just hasn't made it up yet. 

I hope you're having a good day and keeping warm, its cold out there in that snow! 

Stamp Set: Curly Cute

Ink: Rich Razzleberry

Cardstock: Whisper White, Rich Razzleberry

DSP: International Bazaar

Simply Scored Board

Embellishments: Cajun Craze Button, Rhinestones

Simply Scored Board £25.95

Whisper White £7.50

Ink: £4.95

Buttons £8.25

= £46.65 and get the Sycamore Street DSP for free to make some cards very similar to this design!! 

If you already have the Simply Scored board how about a sentiment set (Curly Cute £13.95), Rhinestones (£4.50) and some coloured cardstock (£6.25) and you'd be at the £45 mark too! 

Shoot me a email or call me if you'd like to place an order for your free SAB product! 

Happy Stampin',

Amanda x

winter fun!

Sorry for being AWOL once again! Its that time of year where everyone is busy and when I do get a spare moment, blogging is not what first pops into my head, but now that I sit here I am thinking my life is pretty sweet right now... 

Its cold and frosty outside, bit I am inside with the nice hot fire, I'm sitting next to our Christmas tree, in a very Christmassy house. There are a gazillion homemade cookies in boxes in the kitchen waiting to be bagged up, tied and tagged for gifts. We made an awesome gingerbread house too!! Oh I definately have that Christmassy feeling going on! Love it! 

To go with that Christmassy feeling, I have a couple of Christmassy cards for you! 

Winter Skating and Tubing

Stamp Set: Winter Wonderland, Curly Cute 

Ink: Basic Black, Raspberry Ripple, Lucky Limeade, Island Indigo, Summer Starfruit, Pretty in Pink, Pool Party, Crumb Cake,  Blush Blossom

Cardstock: Pool Party, Lucky Limeade

Punch: 1 3/4" Circle

Extras: Silver Dazzling Details 

I used the blender pen to colour in the little kids, everything was assembled and the final thing to do is line the circle punches with a thin line of silver dazzling details! 

Seeing as I've been absent for a while, I thought I'd give you a bonus card today. 

Winter Wonderland Ornaments

Stamp Set: Winter Wonderland, Curly Cute 

Ink: Basic Black, Raspberry Ripple, Gumball Green, Summer Starfruit, Pumpkin Pie, Pretty in Pink, Soft Suede, Lucky Limeade, Blush Blossom Island Indigo

Carstock: Whisper White, Soft Suede, Gumball Green Core'dinations

Bis Shot: Perfect Polka Dots Emboss, Holiday Ornaments Framelits 

Extras: Linen Thread, Dazzling Details 

I just LOVE this card! The "snowglobe" ornaments are adorable aren't they?! I coloured them with the blender pen again for that watercolour look. I used dazzling diamonds because I wanted that thick glittery look but dazzling diamonds would work well too. 

The Gumball Green cardstock is a lighter shade underneath so once embossed I sanded the paper to reveal the pretty colour below! 

I hope you enjoyed a couple Winter Wonderland creations today. If you want any last minute gifts for Christmas you have until the end of today to get your order to me and I will tag it on to the last order before Christmas!! 

Happy crafting! 

Amanda xx

moving forward...

There are so many lovely new stamp sets in the catalogue, I have a wish list as long as my arm! One set however that I didn't pay much attention to was Moving Forward. It has cute kiddy images like a bike and boat as well as a frog and bird which could be used for a modern style card - not necessarily kiddy ones. So I hadn't really noticed it until I was reading Heather's blog and she did a little series of cards using this set and I was hooked! It went from not even being on the list to pretty much the top! 

Well, I got it! Its so cute and different - I love it! I thought it'd be perfect for a card I wanted to make to congratulate some friends of ours who are adopting! They have 2 kids - one girl and one boy! Seeing as they aren't babies I didn't want to make it too much like a new baby card so I thought these images would work perfect for a couple of toddlers! 

Stamp Set: Moving Forward, Curly Cute

Ink: Baja Breeze, Pretty in Pink, Crumb Cake

Cardstock: Whisper White, Crumb Cake, So Saffron

DSP: Floral District

Punch: Itty Bitty, Scallop Trim

Ribbon: Pretty in Pink Satin (retired)

Accessories: Mini Brads

Aren't the mini brads just the cutest little accent?! They add a little fun to the card but not as glitzy as rhinestones or pearls would be! 

What do you think? Hope you liked it! 

Amanda xo

merry mini stars

I showed you a quick card using the Merry Minis tree earlier this week so I thought I would show you the star punch today! 

Doesn't it just look darling in different scraps of red and green with just one sparkly gold star!?

Stamp Set: Curly Cute

Cardstock: Real Red, Cherry Cobbler, Lucky Limeade, Champagne Glimmer, Whisper White

Ribbon: Real Red Stitched Grosgrain

Punch: Scallop Trim, Merry Minis

Embossing Powder: White 

Another great card to use up scraps of paper! and a great way to add a little glimmer with one gold star! 

Happy Stampin',

Amanda x

use up your scraps!

I wanted to show you a card using the holiday ornaments framelits today. It actually uses the negative space cut out so you can use the ornament shape for another project! Behind the ornament I laid down strips of ribbon (great for using up scraps that aren't big enough for tying into knots or bows but too precious to throw away!) I just love all the different textures and colours you can achieve doing this tecinque with very little ribbon too! I added a bow too and red stitched outline around the ornament to give it a little more definition. I added some more of the ruffled ribbon to the top and bottom of the sentiment, the ruffled ribbon gives a lovely border! 

Ribbon Ornament

Stamp Set: Curly Cute

Ink: Real Red

Cardstock: Whisper White

Big Shot: Holiday Ornaments Framelits

Ribbon: Old Olive Taffeta, Real Red Taffeta, Gumball Green Stitched Satin, Lucky Limeade Ruffle, Gumball Green Sweater Trim

Have a great day! 

Happy Stampin',

Amanda x

gradient resist some more

Remember a few weeks ago I did a gradient emboss resist card with the snowflake soiree stamp set. So here is another card with the same gradient emboss resist technique. 

This would be a lovely wintery card but not necessarily a Christmas card! Not all winter cards have to be Christmas cards! 

Wintery Trees 

Stamp Set: Lovely As A Tree, Curly Cute

Ink: Pool Party, Marina Mist, Island Indigo, Midnight Muse

Cardstock: Whisper White, Island Indigo 

Ribbon: Whisper White Organza 

Extra: White Emboss Powder

So this was the same as the last card, I embossed the trees and then sponged over the card gradually getting the colour darker. On the lighter side I tied some organza ribbon. 

What do you think? Hope you like it! 

Thanks for stopping by! 

Amanda xo

betsy's blossoms

One of the new stamp sets in the new annual catalogue is called Betsy's Blossoms. Its full of flowers, leaves, and a bird too!! So here's a cute card using some of the darling images from this fabulous new set!

Birthday Blossoms

Stamp Set: Betsy's Blossoms, Curly Cute

Ink: Rich Razzleberry, Daffodil Delight, Gumball Green

Cardstock: Whisper White

DSP: Floral District

Big Shot: Apothecary Accents Framelits

Ribbon Stitched Grosgrain

Accessories: Rhinestones

Okay, I know what you're going to say, that's a lot of cutting out! Well, yes, I can't deny that, there is a fair amount of cutting but its not hard cutting and everything layered on top just looks so clean and cute! I stuck a strip of the new Floral Distict DSP to some white cardstock, I laid the Apothecary Accents framelit down so it would cut half white and half DSP, then ran it through the Big Shot. To hide the join I stuck down some of the beautiful new stitched grosgrain! 

Right, I have a busy day of prepping for 2 workshops, one tonight and on tomorrow afternoon, I am looking forward to some crafty fun with some lovely ladies!! 

Happy Stampin',

Amanda xx

stitched owl

A couple weeks ago Simply Stampin' Challenge was a stitched challenge - it could be faux or proper sewing. Well, you know I love my faux stitching! I wasn't very organised in taking a photo and therefore just missed that week completely with is gutting because I'd created this sweet little card for the challenge.

Birthday Stitched Owl

Stamp Set: Curly Cute, Betsy's Blossoms

Ink: Early Espresso, Gumball Green

Cardstock: Crumb Cake, Primrose Petals, Very Vanilla, More Mustard

DSP: Patio Party

Punch: Owl Builder, Boho Blossoms, Itty Bitty Punch Pack

Accessories: White Embossing Powder, Rhinestones

This is a pretty simple card actually, the owl was punched and assembled it. I stamped the leaves and branch stamp in white cardstock for the owl to sit on and embellished with some little blossoms. I stamped and embossed the sentiment with white embossing powder. Everything got faux stitched with a espresso marker. 

I hope you enjoyed this slightly delayed creation!

Happy Stampin',

Amanda x

simply stampin' challenge 74

Hello! 

Another Simply Stampin' Challenge for you all today. Its a colour challenge for you folks today...

Blushing Bride, Calypso Coral, Old Olive, Very Vanilla

Stripes and Flower

Stamp Set: Curly Cute

Ink: Calypso Coral

Cardstock: Very Vanilla, Blushing Bride, Calypso Coral, Old Olive

Punch: Blossom, Triple Layer Doily, 1 3/8" Circle

Accessories: Rhinestone

Extras: White Gel Pen

Okay, so I had loads of scraps to use up so I thought I'd make up my own striped DSP. I covered some printer paper with SNAIL and then laid down varying width strips of Blushing Bride and Calypso Coral.I added some extra interest to it by doing faux stitching in various places and around the entire edge. I finished it off with a blossom flower and a doily for the centre. Added a sentiment and a rhinestone! 

What's your favourite way to use up scraps?

Don't forget to check out the other DT entries on the Simply Stampin' blog.

Happy Stampin',

Amanda xx

bright and happy!

Have you had a good weekend? I certainly did! I had 2 Stampin' parties for some really lovely hostesses and their friends, a nice walk at sunset with my darling and a BBQ on Sunday afternoon - yum yum! I must admit I am slightly pink! Oops! 

So a fun bright and summery card for you guys today! Its using another new stamp set from the mini catalogue - Bright Blossoms. 

Blossoms Row

Stamp Set: Bright Blossoms, Curly Cute

Ink: Old Olive, Rich Razzleberry, Pacific Point, Melon Mambo, Pumpkin Pie

Cardstock: Crumb Cake, Pumpkin Pie

DSP: Brights Paper Stack

Punch: Scallop Edge

Ribbon: Pumpkin Pie & Old Olive Grosgrain Ribbon

So the flowers were stamped in a row, each in different colours just for a vibrant pop of colour! This card if nothing else, delivers colour! I added some scallop edge and rich razzleberry paper stack as a base for the flowers to sit on. For a bit more colour I added some of the grosgrain ribbon, and a sentiment! 

Are you enjoying the fun colours here? Its been a while since I last cracked out some of these colours - they're bright and summery, love them!

Have a great day!

Amanda x

more circles

Well, I think you're getting the idea that I am in love with the Circle Circus set that I borrowed a while back - I definitely created a lot within the short time I had it! 

Now I think this is the card I made for my fellow design team member, Deb, for her birthday sometime last month. Sorry I can't remember exactly, April just seems SO long ago!! I still can't believe its more than half way through May already!! Madness! 

Birthday Circles

Stamp Set: Circle Circus, Curly Cute

Ink: Regal Rose, Pretty in Pink, Baja Breeze, So Saffron, Certainly Celery

Cardstock: Whisper White, Pretty in Pink

Accessories: Rhinestones

What I love about this set is all the pretty patterns that all work really well together and here each pattern and colour really pops. A great flat card!

I hope you enjoyed this share today! 

Happy Stampin',

Amanda xo

still twitterpated!

Wow isn't the weather just glorious! I wish it would remain like this for the summer! I've been sunning myself in the garden and enjoying doing work outside and reading! Ah I love life! 

Okay so today's card is pretty much an exact CASE of a card I found on pinterest, you can see the card here. It was just so pretty and seemed perfect the way it was...

Twitterpated Romance Birthday

Stamp Set: Bordering on Romance, Curly Cute, Apothecary Art

Ink: Basic Grey, Baja Breeze, Island Indigo, Blushing Bride, Pear Pizzazz, Riding Hood Red, Basic Black

Cardstock: Whisper White, Basic Grey, Riding Hood Red

DSP: Twitterpated

Big Shot: Framelits, Adorning Accents Edgelit

Accessories: Pearls

The little frame on the label is done using the Apothecary Art stamp set, just inking up the outer frame. The flowers were stamped, coloured with the stampin' write markers and then cut out for more dimension. I added one simgle little flower by the sentiment to balance the card. The scallop trim is using one of the new edgelits - isn't it pretty with those tiny scallops on the big scallops?! 

Hope you're enjoying the lovely weather!

Happy Stampin',

Amanda xx

vintage style medallion

Another of the stamps I've been eyeing up in the catalogue for ages is the Medallion background stamp, so when Rhoda came down I asked to borrow it. I thought I'd show you one of the creations that I came up with using it...

Medallion Congratulations

Stamp Set: Medallion, Curly Cute, French Foliage

Ink: Crumb Cake, Soft Suede

Cardstock: Crumb Cake, Soft Suede, Very Vanilla, Vellum Paper

Punch: Boho Blossoms

Accessories: Pearls

Extras: Champagne Shimmer

I stamped the medallion in the background and then using a combination of soft suede ink (stamping off for a lighter shade) and champagne shimmer paint  to stamp some water drop marks over the background to add a subtle glittery texture. I stamped the sentiment on vellum and wrapped it around the card. Finally I added some punched flowers and pearls for a bit of a colour punch and voila! 

Hope you enjoyed this vintagy type card. 

Happ Stampin',

Amanda x

fresh vintage

Yesterday saw the beginning of the Sale-A-Bration. Today  want to show you a couple cards I have made using the Fresh Vintage SAB set.

Sorry for the poor image quality - its been pretty miserable outside - I am looking forward to lighter days and happier weather! 

Fresh Vintage Thank you

Stamp Set: Fresh Vintage (SAB), Curly Cute

Ink: Wild Wasabi, So Saffron, Rose Red, Crumb Cake

Cardstock: So Saffron, Very Vanilla

Accessories: Rose Red Seam Binding

I stamped the border stamp all over the background in Crumb Cake. Next I coloured in and stamped the large floral image on some Very Vanilla cardstock. I stamped the sentiment in Rose Red and then sponged everything with Crumb Cake to make it look vintage. Finally I added some ruffled Rose Red seam binding ribbon along the edge and adhered it all together. 

Fresh Vintage Letter 

Stamp Set: Fresh Vintage (SAB), French Foliage, Teeny Tiny Wishes

Ink: Always Artichoke, Rose Red, Crumb Cake, Early Espresso

Cardstock: Whisper White, Always Artichoke

Punch: Postage Stamp

Big Shot: Scallop Envelope 

I stamped the french hand written note from French Foliage on a small piece of Whisper White cardstock. I distressed it and sponged it with Crumb Cake to make it aged and vintage. I also sponged the scallop envelope. I coloured in and stamped the sweet postage stamp from the new fresh vintage set, and punched out the new postage stamp punch. Again I sponged and the adhered to the envelope, I stamped the Paris postmark and water splotches from French Foliage, the friend to friend sentiment from Teeny Tiny Wishes, and the large flower from the Fresh Vintage set on the envelope - each of these images work really well together to add to the vintage feel. The large Fresh Vintage flower was stamped all over the back ground of the card to tie everything together. 

Come back tomorrow for some more creative inspiration! 

Amanda x

happy surprises

I had a lovely little surprise in the post on Friday! It was really sweet so I thought I would just share it with you all! It was from my Stampin' Up grandma, Amanda.

She sent me this sweet little bracelet. She sends every demo one when they get their first downline and promote to Bronze 3! It comes with 3 beads on it, one is a dragonfly, her trademark and one that says love on it and the third one is for the first member of the downline. Then whenever you get a new member in your downline she sends you another bead for your bracelet! Its really sweet of her, and here it is, complete with packaging and card...

I hope you enjoyed seeing today's little share! The card is just gorgeous and so cheerful! Love it! 

Catch you again tomorrow! 

Amanda 

x