Kool Kitty Musings

October Elemental Inspiration - Daring Cardmakers Challenge

Morning all!

So this week, it was my turn to choose the image for the Elemental Inspiration Challenge over on the Daring Cardmakers blog.

And as it's October, there had to be a hint of autumn in the air!

Here's what I chose via good old Pinterest:

The elements I went with were a book, autumnal orange/peach tones, and a few flowers for good measure:

Stamps: The Stamp Market - In My Book, The Stamp Market - True Story (r), WPlus9 - Heartfelt Holiday (r)
Dies: The Stamp Market - Book Die, Pinkfresh Studio - Notched Corner Frame

The perfect excuse for me to use the Book die from The Stamp Market that I've been coveting for ages and finally managed to snag here in the UK.

I cut the cover and spine details from Grapefruit cardstock and added some embossed details from the In my Book and True Story sets.

Then I cut an aperture in the cover using a Notched Corner Frame die from Pinkfresh Studio. I stamped the You are No. 1 sentiment in Dijon ink on Neenah and added more details from the stamp sets mentioned.

The green folksy branches at the bottom are from the Heartfelt Holiday stamp set from WPlus9 - that stamp has had so much use over the years, as it's just perfect for adding details here and there.

I needed a contrasting background for my book, so used Evergreen cardstock as the card background and added flowers and leaves from the Book die set in Rusty, Fern, and Rainforest, with Almond cardstock in the centres.

Make sure you check out the projects from the rest of the design team here, and play along if you can!

Happy crafting!

---

The Stamp Market - In My Book stamps Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - True Story stamps (r) Shop at: MISC	WPlus9 - Heartfelt Holiday stamps (r) Shop at: MISC | SHC (UK)	The Stamp Market - Book dies Shop at: MISC
Pinkfresh Studio - Notched Corner Frame dies Shop at: MISC | SBC	The Stamp Market - Dijon ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Fern ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Gravel ink pad Shop at: MISC
The Stamp Market - Peach ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Salmon ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Umber ink pad Shop at: MISC	Versamark ink pad Shop at: AZ (UK) | SHC (UK)
Concord & 9th - Evergreen cardstock Shop at: C&9 | SBC | SHC (UK)	Concord & 9th - Grapefruit cardstock Shop at: C&9 | SBC | SHC (UK)	Concord & 9th - Neutrals Assorted cardstock Shop at: AZ (UK) | C&9 | SBC	Concord & 9th - Rainforest cardstock Shop at: C&9 | SBC | SHC (UK)
Neenah Classic Crest 110 lb smooth Solar White cardstock Shop at: AZ (UK) | MISC | SBC	The Stamp Market - Coral Reef cardstock Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Fern cardstock Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Rusty cardstock Shop at: MISC
Hero Arts - White embossing powder Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC | SHC (UK)	Bearly Art - Precision Craft Glue Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Lawn Fawn - Stamp shammy cleaner Shop at: SBC | SHC (UK)	Mini MISTI stamping tool Shop at: MISC | SBC
MISTI stamping tool Shop at: SBC	Waffle Flower - 6.5 x 8.5 Grip Mat Shop at: SBC | SHC (UK)	Crafter's Companion - Gemini machine Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Sizzix - Big Shot machine Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC
Sizzix - Sidekick machine Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (maxi) Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (small) Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC

Over the Rooftops with Concord & 9th

Morning all!

I'm back on the Seven Hills Crafts blog today with a project featuring another festive favourite from last year's Concord & 9th Christmas release.

Yep, this week it's Over the Rooftops!

While I spent last week on house and cat sitting duty away from my craft space, I filled some of the time by die-cutting and assembling scores of tiny little houses from this set ready to use on future cards.

Honestly, these kinds of dies are perfect when you need to pack light for crafting on the go, and they use up lots of cardstock scraps!

Win-win!

So once I was reunited with my craft desk, it was just a matter of putting some of those houses to good use on a card.

Paper: Waffle Flower - Season's Greetings
Stamps: Concord & 9th - Over the Rooftops, Waffle Flower - Family Christmas
Dies: Concord & 9th - Over the Rooftops, Mama Elephant - Framed Tags - Madison Avenue

I've made countless cards with Over the Rooftops before, and wanted to try a different look.

I already had the Season's Greetings paper pad from Waffle Flower out on my desk, so used the candy cane stripe for the background and the woodgrain pattern to cut the frame.

Waffle Flower also came up trumps with the perfect sentiment for this little street scene - the Family Christmas sentiments.

Once everything was assembled, I added some frosty sparkly touches to the roofs, windows, and steps with glitter glue.

Until next time, happy crafting!

---

Concord & 9th - Over the Rooftops stamps Shop at: C&9 | SBC | SHC (UK)	Waffle Flower - Family Christmas stamps Shop at: SBC | SHC (UK)	Concord & 9th - Over the Rooftops dies Shop at: C&9 | SBC | SHC (UK)	Mama Elephant - Framed Tags - Madison Avenue dies Shop at: MISC
Versafine - Onyx Black ink pad Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC | SHC (UK)	Waffle Flower - Season's Greetings paper pad Shop at: MISC | SHC (UK)	Bearly Art - Precision Craft Glue Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Lawn Fawn - Stamp shammy cleaner Shop at: SBC | SHC (UK)
Mini MISTI stamping tool Shop at: MISC | SBC	Crafter's Companion - Gemini machine Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Sizzix - Big Shot machine Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Sizzix - Sidekick machine Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC
Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (maxi) Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (small) Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC

Primrose Garden with Concord & 9th

Morning all!

I'm back on the Seven Hills Crafts blog today with a card project inspired by some colour combos showcased in Concord & 9th's new Christmas release.

When the sneak peeks for the September release were shared on social media, I was really excited to see that there was a festive take on the Primrose Garden die and stamp set from earlier in the year.

So I thought, why not use those colours with Primrose Garden?

Well, here's how it turned out:

Dies and stamp: Concord & 9th - Primrose Garden

One tip I have for these floral die sets that have a stitched guide is to cut yourself a spare one from cardstock to keep inside the storage pocket, as once you start layering the floral elements on your project you'll start covering up the stitched outlines, and it can be quicker to just take a quick glance at your cardstock guide to keep you straight. The included sample image is also useful, but the stitched outline was the best reference for me.

And as for the layers, here are the colours I used building up from my black card base:

• Rainforest (also in the 2024 assorted cardstock pack)
• Juniper
• Eucalyptus (also in the 2024 assorted cardstock pack)
• Cocoa (neutrals pack) + Sea Glass
• Watermelon (also in the 2024 assorted cardstock pack)
• Nectar + Stardust
• Almond (neutrals pack) + Espresso (neutrals pack)
• Nutmeg (sentiment banner)

As you can see, I've used a number of colours from the neutrals pack. I really hope Concord & 9th will release them separately too, as there are some really useful browns in here, plus that Almond shade is fantastic for magnolia-like blooms. It's a lovely alternative to cream/white and works as a really pale peachy blush tone.

The sentiment from the Primrose Garden stamp set is simply embossed in white and as a finishing touch I added some champagne glitter drops to the flower centres for a little sparkle.

I'm really pleased with how this colour combo turned out and will definitely be using it again!

Until next time, happy crafting!

---

Concord & 9th - Primrose Garden stamps Shop at: C&9 | SBC | SHC (UK)	Concord & 9th - Primrose Garden dies Shop at: C&9 | SBC | SHC (UK)	Versamark ink pad Shop at: AZ (UK) | SHC (UK)	Concord & 9th - 2024 Color Collection card pack Shop at: C&9 | SHC (UK)
Concord & 9th - Assorted cardstock pack Shop at: C&9 | SBC | SHC (UK)	Concord & 9th - Neutrals Assorted cardstock Shop at: AZ (UK) | C&9 | SBC	Pinkfresh Studio - Glitter Drops: Champagne Shop at: MISC	Hero Arts - White embossing powder Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC | SHC (UK)
Bearly Art - Precision Craft Glue Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	EK Success powder tool Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Lawn Fawn - Stamp shammy cleaner Shop at: SBC | SHC (UK)	Mini MISTI stamping tool Shop at: MISC | SBC
Crafter's Companion - Gemini machine Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Sizzix - Big Shot machine Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Sizzix - Sidekick machine Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (maxi) Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC
Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (small) Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC

Leafy Lushness - Daring Cardmakers Challenge

Morning all!

It's my turn to set the challenge over on the Daring Cardmakers blog this week, so I thought it was definitely time for some seasonal crafting by putting the focus firmly on lush leaves!

Leaves come in many sizes, shape, and colours, and it's colours that I wanted to play with for my card:

Stamps and dies: The Stamp Market - Just Because STAMPtember 2019 (r), Waffle Flower - Birthday Wishes, MFT - Brush Splatter Background (r), Waffle Flower - Diamond Texture

I used the same leaf stamp from a Simon Says Stamp STAMPtember bundle by The Stamp Market and stamped it in 6 different (rainbow) shades of ink (all listed below).

In my cardstock scraps folder I have a pocket for background panels that need to be used up on something, these panels were made for previous projects but just didn't work out for one reason or another and have been waiting (sometimes years!) to finally be used.

Well, that time has arrived for the white Diamond Texture cover plate from Waffle Flower that I'd also stamped in light grey ink with the Brush Splatter Background from MFT.

After arranging all the leaves on the white panel, I stuck them down along the spine and the base of the leaves so that I could curl up the tips for a little dimension on the finished card.

I trimmed off the overhanging bits, then added a little dimension (which cardstock scraps) behind the leafy panel when sticking it down on my card base.

I wanted something bold yet simple for my sentiment, and the Birthday Wishes set from Waffle Flower has quickly become a go-to option.

Finally, I added clear droplets here and there in some of the white space to add a little balance.

Make sure you check out the projects from the rest of the design team here, and play along if you can!

Until next time, happy crafting!

---

The Stamp Market - Just Because STAMPtember 2019 stamp and die bundle (r) Shop at: MISC	Waffle Flower - Birthday Wishes stamps Shop at: SBC | SHC (UK)	MFT - Brush Splatter Background stamp (r) Shop at: MISC	Waffle Flower - Diamond Texture die Shop at: SHC (UK)
Waffle Flower - Birthday Wishes dies Shop at: SBC | SHC (UK)	Altenew - Limestone dye ink Shop at: MISC	Lawn Fawn - Black Licorice ink pad Shop at: MISC | SHC (UK)	The Stamp Market - Blush Pink ink pad Shop at: MISC
The Stamp Market - Emerald Isle ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Fresh Pink ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Golden ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Julep ink pad Shop at: MISC
The Stamp Market - Melon Orange ink pad Shop at: MISC	Neenah Classic Crest 110 lb smooth Solar White cardstock Shop at: AZ (UK) | MISC | SBC	Jackdaw Express - AM534 - Premium White Watercolour Card 300gsm Shop at: AZ (UK)	The Stamp Market - Clear droplets Shop at: MISC
Bearly Art - Precision Craft Glue Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Ranger - Glossy Accents Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Lawn Fawn - Stamp shammy cleaner Shop at: SBC | SHC (UK)	Mini MISTI stamping tool Shop at: MISC | SBC
MISTI stamping tool Shop at: SBC	Waffle Flower - 6.5 x 8.5 Grip Mat Shop at: SBC | SHC (UK)	Tim Holtz - Distress Sprayer Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Crafter's Companion - Gemini machine Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC
Sizzix - Big Shot machine Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Sizzix - Sidekick machine Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (maxi) Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (small) Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC