Kool Kitty Musings

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!

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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!

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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

Sweater Season with Concord & 9th

Morning all!

I'm back on the Seven Hills Crafts blog today with a project to prepare us for the cooler weather that will no doubt be on the way again (after this warm spell!).

The cold snap we experienced last week was enough for me to get inspired to pull out a fab stamp and die set from Concord & 9th's 2023 Christmas release.

The Sweater Season die set contains 3 styles of jumpers and 3 hat designs, along with lots of little details to decorate them, and a "Bundled Up!" word die.

So, I grabbed my stash of Concord & 9th cardstock scraps and got to work cutting out this winter wardrobe.

Dies and Stamps: Concord & 9th - Sweater Season

Here are the colours I used:

• Evergreen
• Tidepool
• Nectar
• Grapefruit
• Honeycomb

I also used an off-white for a neutral shade.

The little stitch and knit details from the Sweater Season mini stamp set add the perfect finishing touch.

So many possibilities for creating different looks.

I played around with the positioning of the hats and sweaters so that I could add a few sentiments from the stamp set before sticking everything down.

What's great about this set, is that once you've made one card, you can use it as a guide for similar designs in other colour combos, which is a real time-saver in the festive crafting season!

Until next time, happy crafting!

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Concord & 9th - Sweater Season stamps Shop at: C&9 | SBC | SHC (UK)	Concord & 9th - Sweater Season dies Shop at: C&9 | SBC | SHC (UK)	The Stamp Market - Gravel ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Salmon ink pad Shop at: MISC
The Stamp Market - Sea Glass ink pad Shop at: MISC	Versafine - Onyx Black ink pad Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC | SHC (UK)	Bazzill Cardshoppe - Taffy Shop at: AZ (UK) | MISC	Concord & 9th - Assorted cardstock pack Shop at: C&9 | 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)	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

On or At the Ball - Daring Cardmakers Challenge

Happy Friday all!

This week over on the Daring Cardmakers blog, the challenge is all about balls - and not just the sporting variety!

Which suits me fine, because the first thing that came to mind was a grand ball of the Bridgerton type, providing me with the perfect excuse to go left field and create a card with an old Jane Austen stamp and die set from Papertrey Ink that has a bit of that Whistledown look to it:

Paper and ephemera: Pink Paislee - London Market (r)
Stamps: Mama Elephant - Birthday Messages, PTI - Simply Jane (r)
Dies: PTI - Simply Jane (r), Magnolia - Zig Zag and Scallop Lace Border (r), The Greetery - PreText Banners

I started out by grabbing a paper collection that goes so well with this set. It's an old one from Pink Paislee called London Market, and I also had the ephemera pack from this, so a good opportunity to use some of those many accents you get!

The frame and cameo are from the Simply Jane set, and rather than use cream, I thought a nice subtle blush pink would work well for the frame and backdrop to the cameo.

I just needed a fitting sentiment to complete the card, so of course had to use this regal one from Mama Elephant's Birthday Messages set.

And there we have it, card complete.

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

Happy crafting!

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Mama Elephant - Birthday Messages stamps Shop at: MISC | SHC (UK)	PTI - Simply Jane stamps (r) Shop at: MISC	PTI - Simply Jane dies (r) Shop at: MISC	Magnolia - Zig Zag and Scallop Lace Border dies (r) Shop at: MISC
The Greetery - PreText Banners dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	Lawn Fawn - Black Licorice ink pad Shop at: MISC | SHC (UK)	Versamark ink pad Shop at: AZ (UK) | SHC (UK)	Bazzill Cardshoppe - Pale Rose Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC
PTI - True Black cardstock Shop at: MISC	PTI - Vintage Cream cardstock Shop at: MISC	Hero Arts - Gold 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)	MISTI stamping tool Shop at: 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

Bespoke Birthday Wishes with The Greetery Takes the Cake

Morning all!

I'm back on the Seven Hills Crafts blog today with a rather bespoke birthday card for my niece.

When queried as to what she wanted on her card this year, she emphatically told me a cake with her age on it, and it needed to be purple!

Whatever the birthday girl wants, the birthday girl gets!

So I naturally reached for the essential supplies to bring this request to life in all its glittery purple glory:

The Takes the Cake die set from The Greetery.

Paper: Lawn Fawn - Lawn Fawn - Rainbow Ever After
Stamps: The Greetery - Tear Strip Tags Birthday, The Greetery - Ticker Tape Background
Dies: The Greetery - Takes the Cake, The Greetery - Takes the Cake Stand, The Greetery - Tear Strip Banners, Lawn Fawn - Oliver's Stitched ABCs, The Greetery - Bold Numbers, The Greetery - Curly Q Streamers, The Stamp Market - Fringe Borders

This die set has seen a lot of use - it coordinates with the rest of the Takes the Cake product suite, but is also a great stand-alone set for creating different cake designs.

I used Lilac cardstock from Concord & 9th for the cake base, then cut different shades of glittery cardstock for the frosting.

Before assembling the cake, I needed to create the perfect celebratory background for it.

The Rainbow Ever After 6x6 paper pad from Lawn Fawn has some lovely ombré backgrounds in it, including this one that goes from light pink to minty green.

I embossed the Ticker Tape Background stamp in super sparkly embossing powder straight onto the paper to cover my card base (I'm sure the Ticker Tape hot foil plate would look a treat too!).

For more celebratory sparkle, I cut the Curly Q Streamers from glitter cardstock and arranged them over the background.

Once the cake was assembled with the matching Cake Stand die, I added one of the Tear Strip Tags Birthday sentiments cut with the Tear Strip Banners die.

This was perfect for lining up the letters of my nieces name cut with one of my all-time favourite alphabets: Oliver's Stitched ABCs.

And of course, she wanted her age atop her cake, so I used the Bold Numbers set from The Greetery (currently out of stock - but subscribe to request it) to add that.

Finally, there was room for a little extra birthday pizazz at the top, so I added a little fringe detail to make the card a touch taller and add some more texture.

I'm hoping this card meets the birthday girl's exacting requirements - who knows what she'll request next year!

Until next time, happy crafting!

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The Greetery - Tear Strip Tags Birthday stamps Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Ticker Tape Background stamp Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Takes the Cake dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Takes the Cake Stand dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG
The Greetery - Tear Strip Banners die Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	Lawn Fawn - Oliver's Stitched ABCs dies Shop at: SBC | SHC (UK)	The Greetery - Bold Numbers dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Curly Q Streamers dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG
The Stamp Market - Fringe Borders dies Shop at: MISC	MFT - Grapesicle ink pad Shop at: MISC	Versafine - Onyx Black ink pad Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC | SHC (UK)	Versamark ink pad Shop at: AZ (UK) | SHC (UK)
Bazzill Cardshoppe - Butter Mints Shop at: AZ (UK)	Concord & 9th - Assorted cardstock pack 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 - Fresh Pink cardstock Shop at: MISC
The Stamp Market - Pale Plum cardstock Shop at: MISC	Lawn Fawn - Rainbow Ever After - 6x6 paper pad Shop at: SBC | SHC (UK)	Lawn Fawn - Silver metallic cardstock Shop at: SBC | SHC (UK)	Memory Box - Delicate Pastel glitter pad Shop at: MISC
Wow! - Platinum Sparkle embossing powder Shop at: AZ (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)
MISTI stamping tool Shop at: SBC	Craft blending brushes Shop at: AZ (UK)	Waffle Flower - Mini Media 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

September Elemental Inspiration - Daring Cardmakers Challenge

Morning all!

Now that I'm back from my jaunt to Cornwall for a family wedding and holiday time, I'm back joining in with the weekly Daring Cardmakers challenges.

And as it's the first Friday of a new month, we have a new Elemental Inspiration challenge based on this image:

So the elements I went with were the peach and aqua tones, the actual peach fruit, and a tiled design:

Paper: Crate Paper - Maggie Holmes - Woodland Grove, Carta Bella - Flower Garden (r)
Stamp: The Stamp Market - Just a Note (r)
Dies: The Stamp Market - Just a Note (r), Hello Bluebird - Pine Boughs (r), The Stamp Market - Scalloped Window Frame, The Stamp Market - Stitched Shaker Windows

I started out by covering my card base in the peach patterned paper from Crate Paper's Woodland Grove collection by Maggie Holmes.

It's a very busy paper design, so I wanted to create a way to make the sentiment stand out more.

Enter the Scalloped Window Frame from The Stamp Market. I had a small piece of Carta Bella paper that just about fit this die and featured a tiled line pattern similar to the tiles in the image.

I mounted the window frame on a Stitched Shaker Window frame, also from The Stamp Market, just to make the transition between layers smoother.

I kept the peach theme by stamping the Just a Note sentiment on the coordinating shadow die in peach ink.

Finally, I needed a little contrasting accent to finish off the card, so I cut the bow die from Hello Bluebird's Pine Boughs set using scraps of Concord & 9th cardstock in peachy tones.

And there we have it, card finished!

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

Happy crafting!

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The Stamp Market - Just a Note stamps (r) Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Just a Note dies (r) Shop at: MISC	Hello Bluebird - Pine Boughs dies (r) Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Scalloped Window Frame dies Shop at: MISC
The Stamp Market - Stitched Shaker Windows dies Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Peach ink pad Shop at: MISC	Concord & 9th - Assorted cardstock pack Shop at: C&9 | SBC | SHC (UK)	Neenah Classic Crest 110 lb smooth Solar White cardstock Shop at: AZ (UK) | MISC | SBC
Crate Paper - Maggie Holmes - Woodland Grove collection Shop at: MISC | SBC	Carta Bella - Flower Garden - Bloom & Grow paper Shop at: SBC	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	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (maxi) Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (small) Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC

Folksy Fall Florals

Morning all!

I'm back on the Seven Hills Crafts blog today with a new card for a new season!

It's hard to believe, but August went by in the wink of an eye, and I now have my autumnal supplies at the ready!

In case you missed it, there's also a brand-new challenge for you to join in with all on the theme of Shades of Autumn. There's a £10 voucher up for grabs for the lucky winner!

My card today is very much inspired by that challenge, in fact the shades of autumn that were showcased recently for The Greetery's new Autumn in the Air collection.

While I was compiling my wish list for that release, I decided to pull out an autumnal set from last year.

The Fall Folk layering stencil set contains five layers for creating a folksy background that really reminds me of Basic Grey designs from back in the day.

Stamps: The Greetery - Opposites Attract, The Greetery - Little Labels
Die: The Greetery - Opposites Attract
Stencils: The Greetery - Fall Folk

As always, the stencil set comes with a handy colour guide for the five steps and also helps you visualise how colours will appear together.

I used Distress Oxides to lay down the colour on cream cardstock in this order:

1. Seedless Preserves
2. Crackling Campfire
3. Brushed Corduroy
4. Wild Honey
5. Aged Mahogany

I then went in with coloured pencils to add line and dot details in a darker shade over the stencilling.

Once that was done, I splattered some dark brown ink over the entire background and used my light brown blending brush to age the edges, then I took some Antique Linen regular Distress Ink to blend more ink around the corners and edges.

I finished off the card with the bold Thank You sentiment from the Opposites Attract stamp and die set, and also stamped one of the mini sentiments in the Little Labels set in a darker shade of brown ink.

We hope you enjoy playing along with the challenge this month!

Until next time, happy crafting!

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The Greetery - Opposites Attract stamps Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Little Labels stamp and cut combo Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Opposites Attract dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Fall Folk stencils Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG
Distress ink pad - Antique Linen Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Distress Oxide ink pad - Aged Mahogany Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Distress Oxide ink pad - Brushed Corduroy Shop at: SBC	Distress Oxide ink pad - Crackling Campfire Shop at: SBC
Distress Oxide ink pad - Seedless Preserves Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Distress Oxide ink pad - Wild Honey Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Lawn Fawn - Soot ink pad Shop at: MISC | SHC (UK)	Lawn Fawn - Walnut ink pad Shop at: MISC | SHC (UK)
PTI - Rustic Cream cardstock Shop at: MISC	PTI - Vintage Cream cardstock Shop at: MISC	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)	Craft blending brushes Shop at: AZ (UK)
Tim Holtz - Distress Sprayer Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Yoseng 8 Finger Ink Blending Brushes Shop at: AZ (UK)	Ranger - Artist brush set Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Crafter's Companion - Gemini machine Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC
Sizzix - Big Shot 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