Language of Love Florals

Hey! 

As promised, I'm back today with some details for card I shared yesterday plus another one too! 

Both these cards are using the Language of Love stamp set. Neither are at all romancey - yes I wanted to get more use out of this cute stamp set. You can still order this set which is in the Spring/Summer catalogue until the end of the month. 

Stamp Set: Language of Love, Happy Day

Ink: Pool Party, Calypso Coral, Pear Pizzazz

Cardstock: Whisper White, Pool Party, Calypso Coral, Pear Pizzazz, Silver Glimmer Paper

Punch: Bird Builder, Small Heart, Owl Builder

Embellishments: Linen Thread, Subtles Buttons

Here I used the sweet little small hearts to make some sweet flowers. I love the patterns on then and look great. I decided I wanted the leaves to have some texture to match the flowers so I used the spotty banner and punched after. I know the banner isn't quite large enough to cover the whole branch but it doesn't look too bad. 

Buttons, a little linen thread bow and glimmer heart are cute finishing touches for this clean and fresh card! 

Stamp Set: Language of Love, Happy Day

Ink: Pool Party, Calypso Coral, Pear Pizzazz

Cardstock: Whisper White, Calypso Coral, Pear Pizzazz, Silver Glimmer Paper

Punch: Bird Builder, Pansy, Fancy Flower, Owl Builder

Embellishments: Linen Thread, Subtles Buttons

Yes this is quite similar to the other card, same colour scheme, but just using one larger flower. I used the love text heart to make my own pattern paper by nesting the heart together a couple times then punching in the centre. If there's a little overlap, it doesn't matter all that much as the button can cover it. See the image below.

The fancy flower punch is retiring at the end of this month so get in quick if you want it before it's gone for good! Doesn't it layer beautifully with the pansy punch?!

I used the wing from the bird builder to make the leaves. Again button, linen thread bow and a glitery heart are sweet finishing touches.

Hope you're having a great day. 

Happy Stampin',

Love-ly Spring-y

Hi there! 

Happy Friday!!! This is my second day in London and another scheduled post for y'all! My friend Emma (who I am staying with) and I are hitting the art galleries today. Its been quite a while since I've been to galleries so I'm looking forward to reliving my student days and seeing some art! 

Stamp Set: Happy Day, Language of Love

Ink: Melon Mambo, Island Indigo

Cardstock: Whisper White, Pear Pizzazz

DSP: Gingham Garden

Punch: Postage Stamp, Small Curly Label, Small Heart

Other: White Gel Pen

I hope this card goes to show that the Language of Love set isn't just for "love" cards. With this colour combo, the card just screams spring!! I think this is just a bit of a different take on a spring card - generally we think of them as being very floral so I like this with the hearts. 

This was actually a card we made back in January at card club - that was a while ago, huh? I thought I'd wait for Spring to come to show you this one though!

I think it really is the the Gingham Garden DSP that makes this so spring like. Its got to be one of, if not my favourite, paper of this year! 

The dash dot is a cute touch that just adds a little extra finishing touch. I love this technique which is so easy and cheap to do and gives a great finished look. 

Hope you enjoyed this. I'm back from London tonight so hopefully if I'm not too shattered and busy I'll have something new for you tomorrow! 

Happy Stampin',

Love-ly Birthday

Hello there! 

Its been another busy day sewing and so on around here and blogging slipped my mind again. 

I had an epic 11 hours sleep last night! (I was in bed before 9pm!!) So in general today has been a good day. My friend, Sam, popped over for a coffee too which was lovely. Only thing that's tinged today with annoyance was a phone call back from the camera shop - they've looked at the lens and it needs a new motor....expensive!!! Argh!

Anyway, I have a pretty little card from January's card club for you today. Its very similar to a card I shared a few weeks ago. 

Stamp Set: Language of Love, Express Yourself

Ink: Crisp Cantaloupe, Pool Party

Cardstock: Whisper White, Crisp Cantaloupe, Real Red, Pool Party, Silver Glimmer

Punch: Small Heart, Owl Builder, Decorative Label

Other: White Gel Pen

So this is a dead simple card but I just wanted to share that now Valentine's Day is over, you shouldn't shove this stamp set to the back of your shelves to gather dust until next year...this set doesn't just have to be for Valentine's or love cards...don't you think it makes a cute little birthday card too? Any so cheery!  

Love the little pops of bright red against the cool pastels. 

Hope you enjoyed this super quick card today. Now I have to get to bed - super packed day tomorrow - invigillating, cleaning and cooking at Auntie Lil's and Bible study....plus most likely more sewing and some card making too! 

Happy Stampin', 

Love & Congratulations

Hello there! 

I wanted to share with you a card we made at card club last month. Last month's stamp set was Language of Love and this card is the perfect example using all the stamps in the set. It'd be great for a valentine, wedding or engagement! 

Mine went to some friends, Hannah and Renz, who just got engaged last month. I haven't seen them since our wedding, long time now! Renz is a fantastic photographer and he and his friend Marc did our gorgeous wedding photos! Hannah is an amazing beader and she made my tiara for me, it was just perfect and matched my dress perfectly - it was just what I had in mind and I know its totally unique! Lovely couple!

Stamp Set: Language of Love, Sweet Essentials

Ink: Raspberry Ripple, Crumb Cake

Cardstock: Crumb Cake, Sahara Sand, Raspberry Ripple, Gold Foil

DSP: Sweet Sorbet

Punch: Small Heart

Embellishments: Gold Baker's Twine, Chevron Ribbon

I'd call this a very traditional "romantic" colour combination - gorgeous neutrals with a pop of red and gold. I think what makes this a little different is the rich pinky Raspberry Ripple - tradition with a little twist!

Aren't the little floating hearts adorable? They really raw the eye across the card and fill that dead space to the left of the card making it a lot more balanced. 

 I'm really loving the banners in this set, they're just so cute layered up in a little group especially with this DSP and ribbon in the grouping too. 

Sorry for the short blog posts these last couple days, I've been suffering with the effects a cold and its not making me feel very productive! I spent most of yesterday feeling very frustrated with myself that I wasn't getting more done! One redeeming feature of yesterday was that I tried a new recipe which was absolutely delicious - Ranch Cheddar Chicken by Karly from Buns in my Oven. Totally recommend it if you're looking for a yummy new quick and easy weeknight dinner! 

I hope you enjoyed this and will come back again tomorrow for something else pretty and fun! 

Happy Stampin',

Floating Hearts

Hello there! 

Just a quiet and lazy Saturday in store for me, a bit of house work, oh and crafting. Plus I might get to hang out with Stuart a bit too! Its been a manic week for him with report writing and parents evening. He's beat! 

I've got another Valentine idea for you today. Well, I say its a Valentine but really it could be used for an anniversary, wedding, engagement...all you have to do is switch up the sentiment!

Stamp Set: Hearts a Flutter, Language of Love, Express Yourself

Ink: Crisp Cantaloupe, Pool Party, Real Red

Cardstock: Whisper White, Crisp Cantaloupe

Punch: Small Heart

Embellishments: Pearls

I'm starting to sense a pattern with quite a few of my card creations of late - floating and falling. I think it adds a beutiful casual and gentle look. Plus, you can't go to wrong as its doesn't require anything to be straight or exact. 

The minimal use of Real Red really pops against the cool Crisp Cantaloupe and Pool Party, especially the sentiment! Love it!

Again, like the other Valentine card in a previous post which also used Hearts a Flutter, a few scattered pearls was all it needed to finish it off. 

I debated cutting up the small hearts on the Lauguage of Love stamp set so I could stamp them individually, flat on the card, but in the end I decided against it, the dimension of the small hearts just adds a great layer here and helps them pop!

Hearts & Confetti

Hey there! 

Happy Saturday folks! I hope you're having a good day! I had the most lovely morning - breakfast with my besties - Jo and Laura, and Laura's friend Honor too! It was just perfect to catch up, plus there were belated Christmas pressies! Awesome!!

So, as I said earlier this week, I'm trying to play along with more challenge blogs this year. What I love about challenge blogs is that they give you a fantastic starting point, often prove challenging and rewarding when its completed and help you think outside the box, or get out of a rut!

I've been following Freshly Made Sketches for a while and often admire the sketches they have, but I've never actually played along before! Its a new year, I thought I'd give it a go! Here is this week's sketch...

Isn't it lovely and simple? I have to admit, I was a little skeptical about it as I HATE things on diagonals. I just think they look wonky and its just not for me, however, after seeing what the design team members had created I thought, hey, I can give this a go! Besides, if everything was your cup of tea, where would the challenge be!?

Stamp Set: Language of Love

Ink: Primrose Petals, Coastal Cabana, Pear Pizzazz, Crushed Curry

Cardstock: Primrose Petals, Coastal Cabana, Pear Pizzazz, Crushed Curry, Whisper White, Glimmer Paper, Vellum

Big Shot: Hearts a Flutter

Punches: Owl Builder

Extras: White Gel Pen

 I pretty much followed the sketch as it was, I didn't deviate too much - doesn't that make a change!? 

I used the Paper Player's challengecolours again just because I am really LOVING them - so bright and cheery! I also thought I'd incorporate in the confetti idea again. This time the confetti is in the shape of lots of the little punched hearts from the owl builder punch. 

I coloured in the love stamp with the markers, doesn't it look fun in all those bright colours?! And glimmer paper really adds glitz to the card. The white gel pen lines around the diagonal shape and the three little hearts in the corner are the perfect finishing touches.

So, what do you think? Did I pull off the diagonal/non-straight card?! I sure think I did. I think I can be brought around to the idea that not everything has to be at right angles on a card....I just might! 

Hope you enjoyed this, have a nice Saturday!

Happy Stampin',

Anyday Sweet Sayings

Hello again! 

As promised I'm back today with some super simple, quick and easy to make cards using the Sweet Sayings notecards. They're part of the Valentine's promotion Stampin' Up has running and at £5.50 for 12 including envelopes, they're a steal. You can purchase them from my online store, here. You'll need to be quick though as they are only available until January 27th!

Anyway today's shares are non-Valentines cards using the Sweet Sayings notecards. 

Stamp Set: Chalk Talk, Language of Love

Ink: Crisp Cantaloupe, Pool Party, Real Red

Cardstock: Whisper White, Pool Party, Crisp Cantaloupe

Big Shot: Chalk Talk framelits

Punch: Owl Builder, 1 3/8" Circle

Accessories: Baker's Twine, Rhinestone

A couple variations using a few stamps from the Chalk Talk and Language of Love sets.

They're cute and great to have on hand or throw together quickly for an emergency card. 

Stamp Set: Hello Lovely

Ink: Crisp Cantaloupe, Pool Party, Real Red

Cardstock: Whisper White, Pool Party, Crisp Cantaloupe

Punch: Owl Builder, Decorative Label

Accessories: Baker's Twine, Rhinestone, Vintage Faceted Designer Buttons

Likewise these are also quick clean & simple cards using the Hello Lovely set. I'm super pleased with these two and can see myself making a few more, perhaps with a couple more variations added in too and bundling them together to make a pretty little notecard set as a gift. 

This final little note card is using a stamp from the Lots of Thanks stamp set which has lots of lovely thank you sentiments in it. Perfect!

I hope you enjoyed this super quick little post today. I'm sorry its been so quick, I've been struggling with a migraine the last couple days and my to-do list is getting longer by the minute so I am off to accomplish some of those items and hopefully shorten the dreaded list! 

Come back again soon for more pretties! 

Happy Stampin',

Amanda xo

Confetti & Banners

Hello!

Well, today has not gone according to plan. I've got a long to-do list and was looking forward to crossing off a number of items from it today. Unfortunately I woke with a horrid headache, I still went to coffee morning at church this morning, hoping that if I ignored it, it'd go away. Alas it didn't, it simply got worse and developed into a migraine! Oh the fun. When I got home I went back to bed and just dozed for the afternoon! I'm feeling rather frustrated with myself but there's not much you can do with a raging migraine! I'm still feeling a little delicate as I write this but at least it's not requiring a great deal of movement! 

Anyway, onto something I made last night. This year I would love to take part in more challenge blogs, I really enjoy looking at all the pretty things on challenge blogs but seldomly get my act together to actually make something and enter it on time! Two of my favourite are The Paper Players and SU Only and this card fit in perfectly with both challenges! 

The Paper Players' Challenge is this gorgeous colour challenge

SU Only had a 'Fun with New Toys' Challenge on their blog so that's a great opportunity to play with lots of new toys! We all love new toys, don't we!?

Stamp Set: Remembering Your Birthday, Language of Love

Ink: Coastal Cabana, Crushed Curry, Pear Pizzazz, Primrose Petals

Cardstock: Coastal Cabana, Crushed Curry, Pear Pizzazz, Primrose Petals, Whisper White, Vellum

Big Shot: Decorative Dots TIEF (SAB)

Punch: Owl Builder, Small Heart

Accessories: Gold Baker's Twine, Crystal Effects

So I've got to say, these colours just made me feel so happy! They make me think of confetti and sprinkles!

I laid the vellum over the open embossing folder and used the embossing stylus to only emboss the dots I wanted - this meant I could get the look of falling confetti. I then coloured in the embossed dots with my markers. I wish you could feel how lovely this vellum feels embossed! 

The new gold (!!LOVE IT!!) baker's twine and stamped images from the Language of Love set which will be in the Spring Summer seasonal catalogue later this month adorn the top edge - using this bright colours really re-purposes them for other occassions than just Valentine's or for a wedding! 

I also used the Remembering Your Birthday set which is in the AC but its new to me, and I am LOVING it! With the pens I was able to colour in the sentiment, highlight the word sprinkles and omit the word pink to customise it for the card! 

A few little hearts from the Owl Builder and some crystal effects were the finishing touches! 

I am so pleased with how this card turned out. One of my to-do list items for today was a wee video on how to do the embossing technique featured here but alas it'll have to wait until Thursday. 

Happy Stampin',

Amanda xo

My Little Spotlight!

Hi there!

Each week Inky Fingers gives one of their designers a little spotlight, where you get to know a little more about the designer and we get to share a beautiful little project we are proud of. This week it happens to be mine. 

So, for those of you who are new to this blog and me, my name is Amanda. I am married to my wonderful hubby Stuart and we live in a little house in Northampton, England. 

Stuart is a teacher at a local high school and I am a lady with many strings to my bow - housewife, carer for an elderly relative, an exam invigillator at a high school and working hard at my little Stampin' Up! business too! Yes, I am one busy lady! I have been a demonstrator for very nearly 3 years and loving it! 

The project I have for you today is something I am running as a class later this month. It's using the Sweetheart Treat Bags - which are part of the Valentine's promotion. Unfortunately, Valentine's isn't as big a thing as it is over Stateside so I've been racking my brains for a few little ways to use the products with a little bit more versatility.

Stamp Set: Language of Love

Ink: Pool Party, Crisp Cantelope, Real Red

Cardstock: Whisper White, Pool Party

Kits: Sweetheart Treat Bags

Punch: Small Heart Punch

Accessories: Tea Lace Paper Doilies

Extras: MDS

 I've made mine into a little mini album. This would be perfect for giving as a nice Valentine's gift or for an anniversary. Alternatively it would look sweet filled with photos of the children/grandchildren. Mine, however, is filled with odds and ends - motivational quotes, funny pictures, verses...basically anything that makes me happy!

At the beginning of a new year, we see it stretch out before us - the possibilities are almost limitless! Its easy to feel optomistic about life but all too soon, life gets the better of us and its difficult to remain upbeat. I really struggle to stay positive and keep going when things get rocky so I thought making a little motivational album like this would be perfect. When I feel lonely or down I can read through it and remind myself how good life is!

What's great is its still got lots of spare room for more verses, quotes and funny photos! What do you think to this idea? Isn't it fun?

So, I'm running this as a class on Friday 24th (7pm-9:30pm) or Monday 27th (9:30am-12pm) or (7pm-9:30pm). It costs £18 and includes a pack of the treat bags, cardstock, tea lace doilies and the small heart punch - a product total worth over £15!

Please book by January 18th so I can order your goodies in time!

I hope you enjoyed this project. I'll just leave you with the ever so cute little Valentine Monsters I repurposed for little Christmas gifts for all the little kids I know!

Happy Stampin',

Amanda xx