Kool Kitty Musings

DCM - January elemental inspiration

Morning all!

One of my goals this year is to use older and often retired sets in my rather sizable craft collection to create projects for this year's challenges for the Daring Cardmakers blog.

So there is no better time to start than the first elemental inspiration challenge of the year!

Here's the image we're working with:

January is often a strange month for crafting. It's still cold and gloomy, so I often feel like it's a good time to get an early start on my Christmas cards, and well, winter cards are a good alternative too!

The elements that inspired me are the mug of hot chocolate, the cable texture, and the pop of red/pink.

Stamps: Neat & Tangled - Winter Wishes (r), WPlus9 - Cookies & Cocoa (r)
Dies: Concord & 9th - Christmas Cloche, WPlus9 - Cookies & Cocoa (r), The Greetery - PreText Banners, The Greetery - Ribbon Maker Large Scallops, WPlus9 - Snowflake Trio (r)
Embossing folder: XCut - Cable Knit Pattern (r)

I started out by stamping the hot chocolate and cookie elements from the WPlus9 Cookies & Cocoa set - including some white heat embossing on the red mugs.

I knew I had a cable knit embossing folder somewhere, and after spritzing the aqua cardstock with water, I ran it through my Big Shot to get a really deep impression.

Once I'd arranged the elements on the background to my card, I picked an appropriate sentiment from the All Is Calm set and stamped it on a PreText banner strip.

The card was still lacking some details, so I dug about in my bowl of die-cuts left to use up after last year's Christmas crafting and picked out the Ribbon Maker Scallop border.

Then I just added a small bow (from the Christmas Cloche set) and some glittery snowflakes to balance things out.

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

Until next time, happy crafting!

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Neat & Tangled - Winter Wishes stamps (r) Shop at: MISC	WPlus9 - Cookies & Cocoa stamps (r) Shop at: MISC	Concord & 9th - Christmas Cloche dies Shop at: MISC | SBC | SHC (UK)	WPlus9 - Cookies & Cocoa dies (r) Shop at: MISC
The Greetery - PreText Banners dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Ribbon Maker Large Scallops die Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	WPlus9 - Snowflake Trio dies (r) Shop at: MISC	XCut - Cable Knit Pattern embossing folder (r) Shop at: MISC
Lawn Fawn - Doe ink pad Shop at: SHC (UK)	The Stamp Market - Blush Pink ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Bubblegum ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Cherry Kisses ink pad Shop at: MISC
The Stamp Market - Tropic Teal 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)	Neenah Classic Crest 110 lb smooth Solar White cardstock Shop at: AZ (UK) | MISC | SBC
Memory Box - Delicate Pastel glitter pad 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)	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	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
Thermoweb iCraft - Purple tape for die-cutting - 1 1/2" Shop at: AZ (UK)	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (maxi) Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (small) Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC

DCM - Light

Happy Friday!

There's a brand-new challenge over on the Daring Cardmakers Blog today, continuing the countdown to Christmas with one-word prompts.

This week, the theme is Light, and of course I had to go with a favourite "light" technique using masking paper!

Stamp: Lil' Inker Designs - All The Christmas You'll Ever Need (r)
Dies: Hello Bluebird - Hill and Dale, Lil' Inker Designs - Stitched Stars (r), Simon Says Stamp - Village
Other: Distress Inks

I really love the effect masking paper can provide when combined with dies.

Just take a white card base, select some dies that work well as silhouettes like a hillside and little houses, cut them from masking paper, stick the masked images over your card base, then get blending with your chosen inks over the masked areas.

I went with a starry sky that has extra white Distress ink blended in a circle over the star mask to create extra glow.

While the masking pieces are still in place, splatter the background with white paint.

Peeling back the masking paper to reveal the silhouette outline never gets old. It's magical every time!

Finally, I added a nice and big sentiment from an old favourite festive set from Lil' Inker Designs. I also love the All The Christmas You'll Ever Need 2 set, which has some great movie quotes on it, and I use that set to stamp the back of cards and envelopes for some extra festive fun. It always makes people smile when they see the Home Alone quote... keep the change you filthy animal! ;)

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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Lil' Inker Designs - All The Christmas You'll Ever Need stamps (r) Shop at: MISC	Hello Bluebird - Hill and Dale dies Shop at: MISC	Lil' Inker Designs - Stitched Stars dies (r) Shop at: MISC	Simon Says Stamp - Village dies Shop at: MISC
Distress ink pad - Black Soot Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Distress ink pad - Dusty Concord Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Distress ink pad - Picked Raspberry Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Distress ink pad - Picket Fence Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC
Distress ink pad - Wilted Violet Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Versafine - Onyx Black ink pad Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC | SHC (UK)	Jackdaw Express - AM440 - White Ivory Bristol Board 335gsm Shop at: AZ (UK)	Dr. Pj. Martin's Bleed Proof White watercolour Shop at: AZ (UK)
Simon Says Stamp - Masking Paper Shop at: MISC	Bearly Art - Precision Craft Glue Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Lawn Fawn - Stamp shammy cleaner Shop at: SBC | SHC (UK)	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	Tim Holtz - Stampers Anonymous Splat Box Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC
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	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

DCM - word prompt: Wish

Morning all!

It's time for a brand-new Christmas countdown challenge over on the Daring Cardmakers blog.

The prompt word this week is "Wish" and so immediately I knew I wanted to feature some festive wishes on a card and at least one sparkly star.

Paper: KI Memories - Winter (r)
Stamps: Avery Elle - Starry Scene (r), Concord & 9th - Sweater Season, Mama Elephant - Scripty Xmas
Dies: Avery Elle - Starry Scene (r), Concord & 9th - Sweater Season, Neat & Tangled - Scandinavian Prints Christmas (r), Essentials by Ellen - Home & Hearth (r), Hello Bluebird - Hill and Dale, Simon Says Stamp - Sentiment Labels, Sizzix - Animal Portraits (r), The Greetery - Bold Alphabet

This card is a riff on an old favourite, in fact "old" might as well be the prompt word for this card, as I've used a super old winter collection from KI memories originally released in the mid noughties!

I'm on a bit of an Odessa to reconnect with older papers in my stash, since very little seems to tick my boxes for Christmas releases at the moment. :(

But it's all good, as there is plenty to use, and there are also digital papers available of some of my favourite past collections. Here's to scoring some Black Friday digital deals!

The other older elements on this card are my ever faithful Starry Scene sky from Avery Elle, the Scandinavian Prints Christmas trees, and Sizzix bear.

But I did add in some new touches. I was determined to give the bear a Christmas jumper, so used the new Sweater Season stamps to add the knit pattern and used the dies to create the scarf detail. But the necklines tin the Sweater Season set weren't wide enough for this bear... so enter a moment of inspiration!

I grabbed the lowercase "L" from the Bold Alphabet set by the Greetery and with a little snipping managed to make it fit as a collar.

Glad all those elements came together, and hope my nephew likes his card. ;)

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!

---

Avery Elle - Starry Scene stamps (r) Shop at: MISC	Concord & 9th - Sweater Season stamps Shop at: MISC | SBC | SHC (UK)	Mama Elephant - Scripty Xmas stamps Shop at: SHC (UK)	Avery Elle - Starry Scene dies (r) Shop at: MISC
Concord & 9th - Sweater Season dies Shop at: MISC | SBC | SHC (UK)	Neat & Tangled - Scandinavian Prints Christmas dies (r) Shop at: MISC	Essentials by Ellen - Home & Hearth dies (r) Shop at: MISC	Hello Bluebird - Hill and Dale dies Shop at: MISC
Simon Says Stamp - Sentiment Labels dies Shop at: MISC	Sizzix - Animal Portraits dies (r) Shop at: MISC	The Greetery - Bold Alphabet dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Stamp Market - Forest ink pad Shop at: MISC
The Stamp Market - Lakehouse ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Rosy 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)
Versamark ink pad Shop at: AZ (UK) | SHC (UK)	Bazzill Cardshoppe - Taffy Shop at: AZ (UK) | MISC	Concord & 9th - Assorted cardstock pack Shop at: MISC | SBC | SHC (UK)	Hero Arts - Azalea cardstock Shop at: SHC (UK)
Neenah Classic Crest 110 lb smooth Solar White cardstock Shop at: AZ (UK) | MISC | SBC	Memory Box - Majestic Hues glitter pad 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)	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)	Waffle Flower - Mini Media Mat Shop at: SBC | SHC (UK)	Sizzix - Big Shot machine Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Sizzix - Sidekick machine Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC
Thermoweb iCraft - Purple tape for die-cutting - 1 1/2" Shop at: AZ (UK)	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (maxi) Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (small) Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC

DCM - word prompt: Wood

Morning all!

There's a new challenge over on the Daring Cardmakers blog as we continue our Christmas countdown with a prompt word as inspiration.

The word this week is wood, so the perfect opportunity to combine the lovely Wood Slice Hearts from The Greetery with other supplies:

Paper: Crate Paper - Falala (r)
Stamps: The Greetery - Sentiment Suite: Christmas
Dies: The Greetery - Sentiment Suite Basics, The Greetery - Deco Frames, The Greetery - Wood Slice Hearts
Stencils: Concord & 9th - Boughs & Holly

I started out cutting and assembling the wooden heart, adding a good splattering of white paint for wintry detail.

While that was drying, I got on with blending the wreath on white cardstock using bright festive ink shades from The Stamp Market.

I cut the wreath panel out with the large Deco Frame from The Greetery and mounted it on a card base covered with my quickly depleting stash of Fa La La paper from Crate Paper.

I then grabbed the Sentiment Suite Christmas stamps and stamped a sentiment on pale pink cardstock cut with one of the coordinating sentiment strip dies.

Then it was time to assemble the rest of the elements, and hey presto, card made!

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

Happy crafting!

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The Greetery - Sentiment Suite: Christmas stamps Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Sentiment Suite Basics dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Deco Frames dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Wood Slice Hearts dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG
Concord & 9th - Boughs & Holly stencils Shop at: MISC | SBC | SHC (UK)	The Stamp Market - Cactus ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Cherry Kisses ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Forest ink pad Shop at: MISC
The Stamp Market - Greenery ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Rosy ink pad Shop at: MISC	Versafine - Onyx Black ink pad Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Bazzill Cardshoppe - Pale Rose Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC
Neenah Classic Crest 110 lb smooth Solar White cardstock Shop at: AZ (UK)	Crate Paper - Falala - Very Merry paper (r) Shop at: MISC	Dr. Pj. Martin's Bleed Proof White watercolour Shop at: AZ (UK)	Tombow - Mono Aqua liquid glue Shop at: AZ (UK)
Tombow - Mono-Multi liquid glue 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)
Detail blending brushes Shop at: AZ (UK)	Tim Holtz - Distress Sprayer Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Tim Holtz - Stampers Anonymous Splat Box Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC | SHC (UK)	Waffle Flower - Mini Media Mat Shop at: SBC | SHC (UK)
Ranger - Artist brush set 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

DCM - word prompt: Cosy

Morning all!

This week over on the Daring Cardmakers blog, we continue our Christmas countdown with the new one-word prompt challenges.

Basically, you can make anything inspired by the prompt word, which is "Cosy" on this occasion.

Of course, I had to go with a Christmas jumper!

Stamps: The Stamp Market - Everyday Greetings
Dies: The Stamp Market - Everyday Greetings, The Greetery - Aida Cloth, Hello Bluebird - Holly and Pine, The Greetery - Big Branches Pine, The Greetery - Hearts at Home: Sweater, The Greetery - Hoopla Oval, WPlus9 - Under the Mistletoe
Stencils: The Greetery - Frosty Flakes

Lots of festive supplies thrown at this card! I definitely didn't read the less is more memo this week. LOL

It all started with that sweater die from The Greetery, then things gradually grew - out came the hoopla dies, then the Aida cloth texture die, then some snowflake stencils and the embossing paste and glitter.

Then I found some greenery I'd previously cut and thought about using it all up on this card, fair enough it looks like the hoop has antlers now, but never to mind...

But it's another card made ready for the festive season!

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

Until next time, happy crafting!

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The Stamp Market - Everyday Greetings stamps Shop at: MISC	The Greetery - Aida Cloth texture plate Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Stamp Market - Everyday Greetings dies Shop at: MISC	Hello Bluebird - Holly and Pine dies Shop at: MISC
The Greetery - Big Branches Pine dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Hearts at Home: Sweater dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Hoopla Oval dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	WPlus9 - Under the Mistletoe dies Shop at: MISC
The Greetery - Frosty Flakes stencils Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Stamp Market - Blush Pink ink pad Shop at: MISC	Versafine - Onyx Black ink pad Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC | SHC (UK)	Bazzill Cardshoppe - Butter Mints Shop at: AZ (UK)
Bazzill Cardshoppe - Pale Rose Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Neenah Classic Crest 110 lb smooth Solar White cardstock Shop at: AZ (UK) | MISC | SBC	Simon Says Stamp - Ivory cardstock Shop at: MISC	Lawn Fawn - Gold metallic cardstock Shop at: SBC | SHC (UK)
Memory Box - Festive glitter pad Shop at: MISC	Tim Holtz - Distress Glitter - Clear Rock Candy Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Dr. Pj. Martin's Bleed Proof White watercolour Shop at: AZ (UK)	Kuretake Gansai Tambi 36-pan watercolour set Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC
Tonic Studios Nuvo Crystal Drops - Morning Dew (clear) Shop at: AZ (UK)	Wendy Vecchi Embossing Paste - White Shop at: MISC	Bearly Art - Precision Craft Glue Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Lawn Fawn - Stamp shammy cleaner Shop at: SBC | SHC (UK)
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)	Detail blending brushes Shop at: AZ (UK)
Tim Holtz - Distress Sprayer Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Tim Holtz - Stampers Anonymous Splat Box Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Waffle Flower - Mini Media Mat Shop at: SBC | SHC (UK)	Ranger - Artist brush set 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

DCM - November elemental inspiration

Morning all!

It's the first Friday of a new month, so we've got a new elemental inspiration challenge over on the Daring Cardmakers blog this week.

But it's not just any elemental inspiration challenge, this is the first challenge in our new series leading up to Christmas.

You can make whatever you want in these Christmas countdown challenges: tags, cards, boxes, decor, whatever you fancy, as long as it's inspired by the challenge theme.

And here's the image to get us started this week.

For my three elements I went with a bow, fair isle pattern, and a mix of a bold and scripty sentiment.

Stamps: The Greetery - Opposites Attract Holiday
Dies: The Greetery - Opposites Attract Holiday, The Greetery - Opposites Attract Holiday Script, The Greetery - Big Beautiful Bow
Stencils: The Greetery - Fair Isle

It wasn't going to be long before I used the Big Beautiful Bow from The Greetery on another card... it was just too tempting to pair it with the Fair Isle stencil set to mimic a pile of PJs or Christmas jumper tied up ready to go under the tree.

I blended the stencils on cream cardstock for a softer look, but stuck to the festive reds, greens and a hint of light pink and aqua.

For my bold sentiment, there was no option but to use the Opposites Attract Holiday set.

Everything was then mounted on a red card base and the card was done. :)

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 Greetery - Opposites Attract Holiday stamps Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Opposites Attract Holiday dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Opposites Attract Holiday Script dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Big Beautiful Bow dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG
The Greetery - Fair Isle stencils Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Stamp Market - Aspen ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Cheeky ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Fresh Mint ink pad Shop at: MISC
The Stamp Market - Gumdrop ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Lipstick Red ink pad Shop at: MISC	Bazzill Cardshoppe - Butter Mints Shop at: AZ (UK)	Neenah Classic Crest 110 lb smooth Solar White cardstock Shop at: AZ (UK) | MISC | SBC
Zig - Wink of Stella glitter brush pen - Clear 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)	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)	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

DCM - Alphabet Soup

Morning all!

It's my turn to set the challenge over on the Daring Cardmakers Blog this week, and what better way to grapple with one of my crafty pet problems.

I don't know about you, but I'm always a sucker for a lovely font whether in stamp or die form. I always have great ambitions to use alphabet sets to do more than just personalise the odd card here and there. I fancifully think I'm going to create loads of striking sentiments and greetings with them, when the reality is that I simply overlook what I have.

Numbers I have no problem using, alphabet sets... hm... I need to dig them out and use them more.

So that's the theme for this week's challenge - get your alpha stamps or dies out to create the main sentiment for your card.

Here's my take with, of course, a couple of retired alpha sets from Pinkfresh Studio:

Dies: Hello Bluebird - Holly and Pine, Pinkfresh Studio - Heather Lowercase (r), Pinkfresh Studio - Lea's Ornate Uppercase (r), The Greetery - Big Branches Pine, The Greetery - Wood Slices
Stencils: The Greetery - Fair Isle

I used the combination of alpha dies to make that sentiment pop against the Wood Slice die and that rather non-traditional colour palette... Well, maybe it's not that non-traditional... there's some red and green... and a whole lot of brown! I was originally inspired by a more muted version of a colour palette that Betsy used for the Fair Isle stencils. I'm thinking blue tones are next on my list.

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

Happy crafting!

---

Hello Bluebird - Holly and Pine dies Shop at: MISC	Pinkfresh Studio - Heather Lowercase dies (r) Shop at: MISC	Pinkfresh Studio - Lea's Ornate Uppercase dies (r) Shop at: MISC	The Greetery - Big Branches Pine dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG
The Greetery - Wood Slices dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Fair Isle stencils Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	Distress ink pad - Old Paper Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Lawn Fawn - Doe ink pad Shop at: SHC (UK)
Lawn Fawn - Manatee ink pad Shop at: SHC (UK)	Lawn Fawn - Walnut ink pad Shop at: SHC (UK)	The Stamp Market - Cactus ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Dijon ink pad Shop at: MISC
The Stamp Market - Fern ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Sage ink pad Shop at: MISC	Bazzill Cardshoppe - Butter Mints Shop at: AZ (UK)	Memory Box - Festive glitter pad Shop at: MISC
Dr. Pj. Martin's Bleed Proof White watercolour Shop at: AZ (UK)	Bearly Art - Precision Craft Glue Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Craft blending brushes Shop at: AZ (UK)	Detail blending brushes Shop at: AZ (UK)
Tim Holtz - Distress Sprayer Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Tim Holtz - Stampers Anonymous Splat Box Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Ranger - Artist brush set 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

DCM - Fun and Games

Morning!

There's a fun new challenge over on the Daring Cardmakers blog today - Joanne has chosen the theme of Fun and Games, and well, in my quest to make more Christmas cards I went with all the fun of a wintry snow day:

Paper, sticker, ephemera: Crate Paper - Bundled Up (r)
Stamps: Flora & Fauna - Holiday Word Party, Flora & Fauna - Holiday Word Party 2, Hello Bluebird - Typed Christmas

And I had the perfect paper still in my stash for that. I think this is the last cut of the Crate Paper Bundled Up paper I have featuring these snowy antics.

I also used a sliver of book paper from the same collection, plus ephemera and that border sticker.

Before I stuck down the patterned paper, I used sentiments from Flora & Fauna and Hello Bluebird to customise the paper. Thankfully, the couple of free-hand stamping attempts turned out OK, but I used the Misti for the longer sentiments.

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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Flora & Fauna - Holiday Word Party 2 stamps Shop at: MISC | SHC (UK)	Flora & Fauna - Holiday Word Party stamps Shop at: MISC	Hello Bluebird - Typed Christmas stamps Shop at: MISC	Versafine - Onyx Black ink pad Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC | SHC (UK)
Bearly Art - Precision Craft Glue Shop at: AZ (UK)	Lawn Fawn - Stamp shammy cleaner Shop at: SBC | SHC (UK)	MISTI stamping tool Shop at: SBC	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (maxi) Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC
Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (small) Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC

DCM - October elemental inspiration

Morning all!

I managed to do a little crafting last weekend, still no major improvement with the trapped nerve in my hand, but Christmas crafting is a-calling, so...

It's the first Friday of a new month, and that means a brand-new elemental inspiration challenge over on the Daring Cardmakers blog!

Here's the image that Shabneez chose:

Well, I went with a bit of left-field thinking and interpreted the elements as follows: Something that hibernates, flora (trees), blue tones

Stamps: Hello Bluebird - Typed Christmas, WPlus9 - Holiday Hugs (r)
Dies: Hello Bluebird - Winter Woods Overlay, WPlus9 - Holiday Hugs (r)

I'm not totally happy with how the colouring on this card came out, I used Distress Watercolour pencils and really should have stuck to using watercolour paper. But I went with Bristol paper that has usually been great for colouring with pencils and watercolour detail.

But anyway... a good learning experience!

Inspired by the tortoise I featured a hibernating creature with the lovely Holiday Hugs set from WPlus9, love using this set every festive season.

I paired it with a really simple background.

I recently purchased the two new sets of Holiday Distress Mica Stains, and tested all 6 colours out on background panels of cardstock.

This is the Juniper Berry spray, and it doesn't look all that festive in a flat lay photo, but once you tilt it to the light you really see all the sparkle and more wintry splatter.

I also added sparkle with a Wink of Stella pen to the coat and boots on the little girl and to the bear's nose.

To frame this scene, I grabbed the Winter Woods Overlay and Typed Christmas sets from Hello Bluebird.

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

Happy crafting!

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Hello Bluebird - Typed Christmas stamps Shop at: MISC	WPlus9 - Holiday Hugs stamps (r) Shop at: MISC	Hello Bluebird - Winter Woods Overlay die Shop at: MISC	WPlus9 - Holiday Hugs dies (r) Shop at: MISC
Versafine - Onyx Black ink pad Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC | SHC (UK)	Jackdaw Express - AM440 - White Ivory Bristol Board 335gsm Shop at: AZ (UK)	Neenah Classic Crest 110 lb smooth Solar White cardstock Shop at: AZ (UK) | MISC	Distress Mica Stain Set 5 Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC
Distress Watercolor Pencils - Set 1 Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC | SHC (UK)	Distress Watercolor Pencils - Set 2 Shop at: MISC | SBC | SHC (UK)	Distress Watercolor Pencils - Set 3 Shop at: AZ (UK) | MISC | SBC | SHC (UK)	Uniball Signo White pen Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC
Zig - Wink of Stella glitter brush pen - Clear Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC | SHC (UK)	Bearly Art - Precision Craft Glue Shop at: AZ (UK)	Lawn Fawn - Stamp shammy cleaner Shop at: SBC | SHC (UK)	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	Tim Holtz - Stampers Anonymous Splat Box Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Royal Langnickel - Zen watercolour round wash brush set Shop at: AZ (UK)
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

DCM - September elemental inspiration

Morning!

It's the first Friday of a brand-new month, so it's time for a new elemental inspiration challenge over on the Daring Cardmakers blog.

This month, it's my turn to pick our inspirational image and I went for something with a few autumnal vibes but still plenty of signs of summer:

The elements I went with were embroidered flowers, a hint of lace (in the background), and woodgrain/frames.

Paper: Honey Bee Stamps - Grain and Grunge
Stamps: The Greetery - Curio Labels, The Greetery - Embroidered Background
Dies: Honey Bee Stamps - Wood Frame Builder, The Greetery - Curio: Divider and Details, The Greetery - Embroidered Blooms, The Greetery - Hoopla Mini, The Greetery - Hoopla Mini Inserts

I started out by blending In the Buff ink on the front of my white cardbase and then stamping the Embroidered Background stamp in Old Paper Distress Ink for a very subtle pattern.

I grabbed the Curio Divider Details die to work out which Hoopla Mini frames I could use.

Then it was time to grab my cardstock scraps and cut lots of leafy bits and florals to fill the frames and openings.

Once I'd got the rough layout arranged, I created the wooden frame with the Honey Bee Wood Frame Builder dies and stuck everything down.

All that was left to do was add a sentiment with the coordinating Curio Labels stamp set.

The card looks quite dimensional in places, but as there's no foam tape used it's flat enough to mail with a normal stamp. :)

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

Happy crafting!

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The Greetery - Curio Labels stamps Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Embroidered Background stamp Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	Honey Bee Stamps - Wood Frame Builder dies Shop at: MISC | SBC	The Greetery - Curio: Divider and Details dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG
The Greetery - Embroidered Blooms dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Hoopla Mini dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Hoopla Mini Inserts dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	Distress ink pad - Old Paper Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC
MFT - In the Buff ink pad Shop at: SHC (UK)	Versafine - Onyx Black ink pad Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC | SHC (UK)	Bazzill Cardshoppe - Butter Mints Shop at: AZ (UK)	Jackdaw Express - AM440 - White Ivory Bristol Board 335gsm Shop at: AZ (UK)
PTI - Melon Berry cardstock Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Coral Reef cardstock Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Golden cardstock Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Kraft cardstock Shop at: MISC
The Stamp Market - Leafy cardstock Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Mossy cardstock Shop at: MISC	Honey Bee Stamps - Grain and Grunge - 6x8.5 paper pad Shop at: MISC | SBC	Lawn Fawn - Gold metallic cardstock Shop at: SBC | SHC (UK)
Bearly Art - Precision Craft Glue Shop at: AZ (UK)	Lawn Fawn - Stamp shammy cleaner Shop at: SBC | SHC (UK)	MISTI stamping tool Shop at: SBC	Craft blending brushes Shop at: AZ (UK)
Detail blending brushes Shop at: AZ (UK)	Waffle Flower - Mini Media Mat Shop at: SBC | SHC (UK)	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

DCM - Pearls

Morning all!

There's a brand-new challenge over on the Daring Cardmakers blog, all on the theme of pearls.

Sadly, I've not had much time to craft this week, so my card is definitely on the simple side as far as the pearls go!

Paper: The Greetery - Print Shop: Daisy Days
Stamps and stencil combo: The Greetery - Print Shop: Daisy Days
Stamp and die combo: The Greetery - Little Labels

Time was of the essence last night, so I grabbed the Daisy Days stamp and stencil combo from The Greetery and used one of the fill-in cards from the coordinating paper pack to fill in some of the white space with the leaves and florals stencils.

I left the main daisies white and just added grey stamped details for them.

I was all set to add pearl drops to all the little berry details, but didn't manage it while the ink was still drying from my stencilling.

So instead, I added some Prima pearls to the Little Label stamp and die combo, and the end result looks a bit like the front cover of the nice notebook. :)

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

Happy crafting!

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The Greetery - Print Shop: Daisy Days stamps and stencils Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Little Labels stamp and cut combo Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Stamp Market - Blush Pink ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Fern ink pad Shop at: MISC
The Stamp Market - Forest ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Golden ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Leafy ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Slate ink pad Shop at: MISC
The Stamp Market - Sunshine ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Greetery - Print Shop: Daisy Days paper pack Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	Neenah Classic Crest 110 lb smooth Solar White cardstock Shop at: AZ (UK)	Lawn Fawn - Stamp shammy cleaner Shop at: SBC | SHC (UK)
MISTI stamping tool Shop at: SBC	Craft blending brushes Shop at: AZ (UK)	Detail blending brushes Shop at: AZ (UK)	Waffle Flower - Mini Media Mat Shop at: SBC | SHC (UK)
Sizzix - Big Shot machine Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Sizzix - Sidekick machine Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Thermoweb iCraft - Purple tape for die-cutting - 1 1/2" Shop at: AZ (UK)	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (maxi) Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC
Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (small) Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC

DCM - All Taped Up

Happy Friday!

There's a brand-new challenge over on the Daring Cardmakers blog this week, and Joanne has us digging about in our Washi tape collections. :D

I don't really have much in the way of Washi tape, just a roll for sealing birthday envelope and a set of Christmas Washi from Crate Paper, which sadly doesn't do a good job of actually staying stuck on envelopes!

But, I remembered that I had a roll of jumbo Altenew Washi tape for covering large surfaces such as card bases and thought now was the time to get it out!

Washi tape: Altenew - Calming Bouquet
Stamps: The Greetery - Floral Sampler, The Greetery - Stitched Sentiments
Dies: The Greetery - Floral Sampler, The Greetery - Hoopla Oval
Texture plate: The Greetery - Aida Cloth

So I started out by covering my card base with the Washi tape, then decided I needed a focal sentiment.

The perfect excuse to grab some of my new supplies from The Greetery's Handiwork release (listed below) and found some ink cubes (in more or less the right colour family) from Altenew.

A bit of stamping, a bit of die-cutting, even the Aida cloth texture plate got some action - and there we go, card made. :)

Make sure you check out the other creative uses of Washi tape from the rest of the design team here, and play along if you can!

Happy crafting!

---

The Greetery - Floral Sampler stamps Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Stitched Sentiments stamps Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Aida Cloth texture plate Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Floral Sampler dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG
The Greetery - Hoopla Oval dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	Altenew - Grape Agate dye ink Shop at: MISC	Altenew - Plum dye ink Shop at: MISC	Altenew - Rubellite dye ink Shop at: EH | MISC
Lawn Fawn - Storm Cloud ink pad Shop at: SHC (UK)	Versafine - Onyx Black ink pad Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Simon Says Stamp - Ivory cardstock Shop at: MISC	Lawn Fawn - Gold metallic cardstock Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)
Altenew - Calming Bouquet washi tape Shop at: MISC | SHC (UK)	Sizzix - Big Shot machine Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Sizzix - Sidekick machine Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Thermoweb iCraft - Purple tape for die-cutting - 1 1/2" Shop at: AZ (UK)
Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (maxi) Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (small) Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC

DCM - July elemental inspiration

Morning all!

It's the first Friday of the month, so time for a new elemental inspiration challenge over on the Daring Cardmakers blog.

Rizwana has chosen a summery inspiration image for us to work with:

I was definitely in the mood for a colourful creation, so I went with the colour palette, the bouquet of flowers in the vase, and interpreted the twisted yarn as a decorative border and came up with this:

Stamps: Pinkfresh Studio - Modern Layered Floral (r), The Greetery - Just Mason Around, The Stamp Market - Everyday Greetings,
Dies: Pinkfresh Studio - Modern Layered Floral (r), The Greetery - Just Mason Around, The Stamp Market - Everyday Greetings, Hero Arts - Infinity Nesting Rectangles, Spellbinders - Postage Edge Rectangles

I started out by stamping the Just Mason Around jar in Coastal ink for the darkest shade and then Sea Glass for the lighter layers to see if it would help me improve the way I line up this stamp set, as it's not always easy when starting with the lightest shade. I think this order may have been an improvement. So I'll try it again in future.

Then I selected some bold ink shades to match the colours in the image to stamp the Modern Layered Floral bouquet.

I absolutely love aqua blue, and have quite the collection of 12x12 aqua tones from back when Bazzill released a whole array of them. I found a great one called Patina, which I think may still be available, and it is such a lovely shade to use as the background to a card if you want a bit of pop.

I combined a panel of this cardstock and cut layers of Melon and white cardstock with Spellbinders Postage Edge Rectangles, and then set about selecting a sentiment.

Well, the Everyday Greetings set from The Stamp Market came up trumps.

It has a good selection of sentiments, but I also love the close-cut look you get with the matching dies, making them perfect for using on backgrounds where direct stamping isn't an option.

To finish off my card, I added some sparkle with sequins.

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

Until next time, happy crafting!

---

Pinkfresh Studio - Modern Layered Floral stamps (r) Shop at: MISC | SBC	The Greetery - Just Mason Around stamps Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Stamp Market - Everyday Greetings stamps Shop at: MISC	Pinkfresh Studio - Modern Layered Floral die (r) Shop at: MISC
The Greetery - Just Mason Around dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Stamp Market - Everyday Greetings dies Shop at: MISC	Hero Arts - Infinity Nesting Rectangles dies Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Spellbinders - Postage Edge Rectangles dies Shop at: AZ (UK) | MISC | SBC
PTI - Orange Zest ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Cactus ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Coastal ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Peony ink pad Shop at: MISC
The Stamp Market - Rosy ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Sea Glass ink pad Shop at: MISC	Versafine - Onyx Black ink pad Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Neenah Classic Crest 110 lb smooth Solar White cardstock Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH
The Stamp Market - Melon Orange cardstock Shop at: MISC	Tombow - Mono-Multi liquid glue Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH	Ranger - Glossy Accents Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Lawn Fawn - Stamp shammy cleaner Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)
MISTI stamping tool Shop at: EH | 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) | EH | SBC
Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (small) Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC

DCM - Just My Type

Morning!

It's my turn to set the challenge over on the Daring Cardmakers blog this week, and well... my inspiration came from a sudden yearning to get one of my favourite die sets out to use up a load of cardstock scraps.

I love the You're My Type set from SugarPea Designs, I use it often for festive and non-festive cards alike. Sadly it appears to be discontinued, but typewriters are a constant trend in the crafting industry and someone is always coming up with a new product line featuring them.

So I challenged everyone to feature a typewriter or typewritten font on their card.

Here's one of the cards I made in my craft session, featuring rainbow papers from Lawn Fawn:

Paper: Lawn Fawn - Really Rainbow
Stamps: Mama Elephant - Mini Everyday Messages, The Greetery - Sentiment Suite: Birthday
Dies: SugarPea Designs - You're My Type (r), The Greetery - Sentiment Suite Basics, MFT - Tall Snow Globe (r)

I started out by assembling lots of typewriters cut from scraps of bright Color Crush cardstock from The Stamp Market. Adding a sentiment from Mama Elephant to the "paper" in the typewriter.

I find the Tall Snowglobe from MFT is a good companion to the typewriter set, so cut those elements from vellum and brown cardstock.

Then I added a smaller sentiment on a sentiment strip to complete the look, then assembled my cards with various papers from the Lawn Fawn Really Rainbow paper pad.

As a finishing touch, I added sequins and a little heart embellishment.

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 - Mini Everyday Messages stamps Shop at: MISC | SHC (UK)	The Greetery - Sentiment Suite: Birthday stamps Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	SugarPea Designs - You're My Type dies (r) Shop at: MISC	The Greetery - Sentiment Suite Basics dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG
MFT - Tall Snow Globe dies (r) Shop at: MISC	Versafine - Onyx Black ink pad Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Lawn Fawn - Really Rainbow - 6x6 paper pad Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Lawn Fawn - Vellum Shop at: SBC | SHC (UK)
Tombow - Mono-Multi liquid glue Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH	Lawn Fawn - Stamp shammy cleaner Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	MISTI stamping tool Shop at: EH | 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) | EH | SBC	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (small) Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC

DCM - Garden Bugs

Morning everyone!

There's a new challenge over on the Daring Cardmakers blog from Shabneez this week.

She has challenged us to feature garden bugs on our cards, and one of the visitors to my garden (although sadly fewer this year) is the humble bee.

Stamps: Hello Bluebird - Typed Everyday, The Greetery - Always in Bloom
Stencils: The Greetery - Always in Bloom
Dies: Hero Arts - Infinity Nesting Rectangles, The Greetery - Honey Bees, The Greetery - PreText Banners

I was looking for a way to feature the large Honey Bee die from The Greetery on my card, and thought about creating a floral background using the Always in Bloom stencils and stamps.

Looking for colour inspiration, I turned to the Look Book for this set on The Greetery website, and a particular layout caught my eye. I really should have paid more attention to the flowers so that I didn't have 4 pink blooms in one row. But I'll know for next time.

I used pencils to add additional details to the leaves and flowers, and then water coloured the body of the bee and inked the wings.

I used a small sentiment from Hello Bluebird and mounted the finished card on a powdery blue shade of cardstock. Slowly, but surely, some of those 12x12 sheets of textured cardstock are getting put to use on card projects.

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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Hello Bluebird - Typed Everyday stamps Shop at: EH	The Greetery - Always in Bloom stamps Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	Hero Arts - Infinity Nesting Rectangles dies Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	The Greetery - Honey Bees dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG
The Greetery - PreText Banners dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Always in Bloom stencils Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	Lawn Fawn - Ballet Slippers ink pad Shop at: SHC (UK)	Lawn Fawn - Butter ink pad Shop at: SHC (UK)
Lawn Fawn - Freshly Cut Grass ink pad Shop at: SHC (UK)	Lawn Fawn - Jalapeño ink pad Shop at: SHC (UK)	Lawn Fawn - Kiddie Pool ink pad Shop at: SHC (UK)	Lawn Fawn - Peachy Keen ink pad Shop at: SHC (UK)
Lawn Fawn - Sunflower ink pad Shop at: SHC (UK)	Versafine - Onyx Black ink pad Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Neenah Classic Crest 110 lb smooth Solar White cardstock Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH	Simon Says Stamp - Ivory cardstock Shop at: MISC
Kuretake Gansai Tambi 36-pan watercolour set Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Brutfuner 120 Colouring Pencils Set Shop at: AZ (UK)	Uniball Signo White pen Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Tombow - Mono-Multi liquid glue Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH
Lawn Fawn - Stamp shammy cleaner Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	MISTI stamping tool Shop at: EH | SBC	Craft blending brushes Shop at: AZ (UK)	Detail blending brushes Shop at: AZ (UK)
Tim Holtz - Distress Sprayer Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Waffle Flower - Mini Media Mat Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Royal Langnickel - Zen watercolour round wash brush set Shop at: AZ (UK)	Sizzix - Big Shot machine Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC
Sizzix - Sidekick machine Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Thermoweb iCraft - Purple tape for die-cutting - 1 1/2" Shop at: AZ (UK)	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (maxi) Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (small) Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC

DCM - Make It Masculine

Morning!

Well, Friday has come around quick again!

It's a new dare from Dawn over on the Daring Cardmakers blog today. Inspired by upcoming Father's Day celebrations, she's challenged us to make a masculine card for any occasion.

A couple of ideas immediately popped into my head, the first being rugby shirt stripes and the other that this would be a perfect occasion to use the Mini Takes the Cake die set from The Greetery, along with some other newish supplies!

Stamps: Concord & 9th - Playful Patterns, The Greetery - Tear Strip Tags Birthday, The Stamp Market - Simply Stripes (r), The Greetery - Sparkler Background
Dies: Hero Arts - Infinity Nesting Rectangles, Spellbinders - Fluted Classics Ovals, The Greetery - Takes the Cake Mini

I started out by creating the striped background with the now discontinued Simply Stripes set from The Stamp Market. There are various widths of stripes in this set, so I was going to alternate them by stamping all the Cobalt blue stripes first, followed by the Breeze stripes in between.

Well maths was never my strong point and I did try and space the Cobalt stripes evenly but as the stripes are longer than the width of the Misti it's not easy to get the spacing spot on when you flip the A2 panel round to add the rest of the stripes. But hey, the end result definitely looks handmade. ;)

I used the Fluted Classics Oval dies from Spellbinders to create an aperture in this panel and then set about creating the cake focal point with the Mini Takes the Cake die set.

I like using cream cardstock as the base for this die to add ink blending for a marbled effect, using glitter cardstock for the piped frosting and adding a touch of glitter with a Wink of Stella to the icing dribbling down the cake.

I just had to use the Sparkler Background stamp behind that aperture. Still loving this background stamp! I stamped it with Cobalt ink on Ivory cardstock and managed to line up the panel behind the aperture so that the candles on the cake have the sparklers exploding behind them.

Then it was just a matter of adding one of the new Tear Strip Tags Birthday sentiments to the front and mounting the assembled card on Apple green cardstock, adding some ink blending around the edges to get it to the exact shade I wanted.

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

Happy crafting!

---

Concord & 9th - Playful Patterns stamps Shop at: MISC | SBC | SHC (UK)	The Greetery - Tear Strip Tags Birthday stamps Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Stamp Market - Simply Stripes stamps (r) Shop at: MISC	The Greetery - Sparkler Background stamp Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG
Hero Arts - Infinity Nesting Rectangles dies Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Spellbinders - Fluted Classics Ovals dies Shop at: AZ (UK) | MISC | SBC	The Greetery - Takes the Cake Mini dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	Lawn Fawn - Jalapeño ink pad Shop at: SHC (UK)
The Stamp Market - Breeze ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Cobalt ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Golden ink pad Shop at: MISC	Versafine - Onyx Black ink pad Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC | SHC (UK)
Bazzill Cardshoppe - Butter Mints Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH	Neenah Classic Crest 110 lb smooth Solar White cardstock Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH	Simon Says Stamp - Ivory cardstock Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Apple cardstock Shop at: MISC
The Stamp Market - Breeze cardstock Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Navy cardstock Shop at: MISC	Memory Box - Delicate Pastel glitter pad Shop at: MISC	Tombow - Mono-Multi liquid glue Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH
Lawn Fawn - Stamp shammy cleaner Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	MISTI creative corners Shop at: EH | SBC	MISTI stamping tool Shop at: EH | SBC	Craft blending brushes Shop at: AZ (UK)
Detail blending brushes Shop at: AZ (UK)	Tim Holtz - Distress Sprayer Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Waffle Flower - Mini Media Mat Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Sizzix - Big Shot machine Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC
Sizzix - Sidekick machine Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Thermoweb iCraft - Purple tape for die-cutting - 1 1/2" Shop at: AZ (UK)	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (maxi) Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (small) Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC

DCM - Everything's Coming Up Roses

Morning!

Joanne has a lovely challenge for us over on the Daring Cardmakers blog - to make a card featuring roses.

Well, it was a good opportunity to dig out some older stash and combine it with some of the items I bought a month or so ago in the Spellbinders sale.

Paper: Basic Grey - Hillside (r)
Stamps: Spellbinders - Sending You (r), The Stamp Market - Handpainted Rose (r)
Dies: Spellbinders - Sending You (r), The Stamp Market - Handpainted Rose (r), Spellbinders - Fluted Classics Squares, The Greetery - PreText Banners

I pulled some papers from Basic Grey's Hillside collection to use as the background to the Handpainted Rose set from The Stamp Market.

By trial and error, I found that the best way to use the Handpainted Rose set is to use the same shade of ink for each of the layering steps. Otherwise, there's too much of a clash between the layers. I've now written myself a note as a reminder and popped it in the storage pocket ready for the next time I use this set.

To add a bit of interest, I used the Fluted Classics Squares dies to cut the white and green papers from the Hillside collection.

The Sending You sentiments from Spellbinders are stamped on white cardstock in black and slate grey ink.

I didn't realise until I'd finished gluing all the elements down that I'd glued them upside down on my card base. It's a good deal I'd trimmed down the card base in the first place, as I just trimmed off the card front and stuck it down on a full-sized square card base.

Disaster averted!

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

Happy crafting!

---

Spellbinders - Sending You stamps (r) Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Handpainted Rose stamps (r) Shop at: MISC	Spellbinders - Sending You dies (r) Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Handpainted Rose dies (r) Shop at: MISC
Spellbinders - Fluted Classics Squares dies Shop at: AZ (UK) | MISC | SBC	The Greetery - PreText Banners dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Stamp Market - Cheeky ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Leafy ink pad Shop at: MISC
The Stamp Market - Slate ink pad Shop at: MISC	Versafine - Onyx Black ink pad Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Neenah Classic Crest 110 lb smooth Solar White cardstock Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH	Basic Grey - Hillside collection (r) Shop at: MISC
Tombow - Mono-Multi liquid glue Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH	Lawn Fawn - Stamp shammy cleaner Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	MISTI stamping tool Shop at: EH | 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) | EH | SBC	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (small) Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC

DCM - June elemental inspiration

Morning!

Well, it's hard to believe it's June already! But as it's the first Friday of the month, there's a new Elemental Inspiration challenge over on the Daring Cardmakers blog, and this is the image Kathy has picked for us:

The elements I interpreted were the iron screen over the window (as the cut-out floral overlay over the cake), flowers, and aqua colour inspiration:

Stamps and stencil combo: The Greetery - Takes the Cake
Background stamp: The Greetery - Sparkler Background
Dies: The Greetery - Takes the Cake, The Greetery - Takes the Cake Banner, The Greetery - Takes the Cake Floral Details, The Greetery - Takes the Cake Stand, Spellbinders - Postage Edge Rectangles, The Greetery - Bold Numbers

I started out by stencilling the flowers from the Takes the Cake set on white cardstock and overlaying it over the Fresh Pink cardstock base.

I then cut all the cake details from glitter cardstock and metallic cardstock, and cut the numbers from Wisteria and added a Wink of Stella to the plain cardstock for a touch of sparkle.

The sentiment banner is stamped on white cardstock and inked with the Fresh Pink ink at the edges.

I then stamped the Sparkler background with Tropic Teal ink and layered up all the elements on the Postage Edge Rectangles die from Spellbinders.

Still loving this combination of supplies for milestone birthdays, and I love how you can go all out on the florals or take a more subtle route.

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

Happy crafting!

---

The Greetery - Takes the Cake stamps and stencils Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Sparkler Background stamp Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Takes the Cake Banner die Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Takes the Cake dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG
The Greetery - Takes the Cake Floral Details dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Takes the Cake Stand dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	Spellbinders - Postage Edge Rectangles dies Shop at: AZ (UK) | MISC | SBC	The Greetery - Bold Numbers dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG
Lawn Fawn - Freshly Cut Grass ink pad Shop at: SHC (UK)	The Stamp Market - Fresh Pink ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Golden ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Greenery ink pad Shop at: MISC
The Stamp Market - Lilac ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Sunshine ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Tropic Teal ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Wisteria ink pad Shop at: MISC
Versafine - Onyx Black ink pad Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Neenah Classic Crest 110 lb smooth Solar White cardstock Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH	The Stamp Market - Fresh Pink cardstock Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Wisteria cardstock Shop at: MISC
Lawn Fawn - Silver metallic cardstock Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Memory Box - Delicate Pastel glitter pad Shop at: MISC	Tombow - Mono-Multi liquid glue Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH	Lawn Fawn - Stamp shammy cleaner Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)
MISTI stamping tool Shop at: EH | SBC	Craft blending brushes Shop at: AZ (UK)	Detail blending brushes Shop at: AZ (UK)	Waffle Flower - Mini Media Mat Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)
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) | EH | SBC	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (small) Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC

DCM - Seashells on the Seashore

Happy Friday!

We're hitting the beach this week over on the Daring Cardmakers Blog, as Rizwana is challenging us to feature shells on our cards.

Well, I had high hopes of featuring more than one shell on my card, but it didn't quite work out that way! lol

Stamps: Hero Arts - Color Layering Sea & Sky (r), Hero Arts - Color Layering Waves (r)
Die: The Greetery - Curio: Summer Findings

I started out by stamping the Color Layering Waves on white cardstock in Sea Glass, Coastal, and Pacific inks.

I then blended Pizza Crust ink lightly at the bottom of the card leaving some white space and also going in with a light hand with some Kiddie Pool blue ink to make that transition from the waves to white less obvious.

I masked off the sea to start blending Oxide Inks for the sun and sky, and added some platters of water while the sea was still masked.

After a few blitzes of the heat gun and more ink layers, I removed the Post-It tape to add some yellow ink below the horizon.

Popped the panel in my Misti to add the "island" (which is actually the small cloud stamped a few times) and palm tree, and of course a few seagulls for good measure.

I just needed to add my greeting, but between closing the lid of my Misti and inking up the stamp I hadn't realised that the stamp had moved, so it's at a rather jaunty angle, But thankfully the font doesn't make it totally obvious that it was a mistake!

The shell from the Curio Summer Findings is cut from white cardstock and coloured with peach ink tones using a small blending brush.

And there we go, card complete.

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

Happy crafting!

---

Hero Arts - Color Layering Sea & Sky stamps (r) Shop at: MISC | SBC	Hero Arts - Color Layering Waves stamps (r) Shop at: MISC | SBC	The Greetery - Curio: Summer Findings dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	Distress Oxide ink pad - Fossilized Amber Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC
Distress Oxide ink pad - Kitsch Flamingo Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Distress Oxide ink pad - Mermaid Lagoon Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Distress Oxide ink pad - Picked Raspberry Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Lawn Fawn - Kiddie Pool ink pad Shop at: SHC (UK)
Lawn Fawn - Pizza Crust ink pad Shop at: SHC (UK)	The Stamp Market - Blush Pink ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Coastal ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Pacific ink pad Shop at: MISC
The Stamp Market - Peach ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Sea Glass ink pad Shop at: MISC	Versafine - Onyx Black ink pad Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Neenah Classic Crest 110 lb smooth Solar White cardstock Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH
3M Post-It tape White Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH	Tombow - Mono-Multi liquid glue Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH	Lawn Fawn - Stamp shammy cleaner Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	MISTI stamping tool Shop at: EH | SBC
Craft blending brushes Shop at: AZ (UK)	Detail blending brushes Shop at: AZ (UK)	Taylored Expressions - Blender Brushes Shop at: MISC	Tim Holtz - Distress Sprayer Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC
Tim Holtz - Stampers Anonymous Splat Box Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Waffle Flower - Mini Media Mat Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	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) | EH | SBC	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (small) Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC

DCM - Sunshine

Good morning!

Well, Friday has come around quick! And it's time for a new challenge over on the Daring Cardmakers blog!

This week Miri has challenged us to feature a sunburst on our cards, so I dusted off the Pop Out Sunburst die from Pinkfresh Studio:

Stamps: The Stamp Market - Eat Cake
Dies: The Stamp Market - Eat Cake, Pinkfresh Studio - Pop Out Sunburst, Spellbinders - Fluted Classics Circles, The Greetery - Bold Numbers, The Greetery - Christmas Pudding

I never seem to go the easy route with rainbow die-cutting projects. I could have just run this die through my machine with white cardstock and inked all the rays separately.

But no, I delved into my pack of Tropical AC cardstock and pulled out 9 colours to run through my Big Shot and then spent much of my Sunday afternoon assembling all the sunburst rays to create 9 card bases ready to be used in future.

For the focal point, I used the Fluted Classes Circles dies from Spellbinders with some Azalea pink cardstock and some white cardstock, which I then splattered with Picked Raspberry Distress Ink.

This provided the background to the Bold Number 9 cut from gold cardstock, and I added a sentiment from The Stamp Market's Eat Cake set, plus a layered up glittery bow from The Greetery's Christmas Pudding die set.

Finally, I went to town with the rainbow sequins I received many moons ago in a Simon Says Stamp card kit. I only have a few of the teeny ones left now, but I wish I could get more, they match rainbow colours perfectly.

The closest I've found are the Studio Katia Crystal Rainbow Fusion sequin mix. I've searched and searched in the UK for this or something similar, but no joy.

Ah well, it's not like I'm short of other sequins. ;)

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

Happy crafting!

---

The Stamp Market - Eat Cake stamps Shop at: MISC	Pinkfresh Studio - Pop Out Sunburst die Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	The Stamp Market - Eat Cake dies Shop at: MISC	Spellbinders - Fluted Classics Circles dies Shop at: AZ (UK) | MISC | SBC
The Greetery - Bold Numbers dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Christmas Pudding die Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	Distress ink pad - Picked Raspberry Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Versafine - Onyx Black ink pad Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC | SHC (UK)
Hero Arts - Azalea cardstock Shop at: EH	Neenah Classic Crest 110 lb smooth Solar White cardstock Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH	Lawn Fawn - Gold metallic cardstock Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Tombow - Mono-Multi liquid glue Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH
3M Scotch double-sided foam tape Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH	Lawn Fawn - Stamp shammy cleaner Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	MISTI stamping tool Shop at: EH | SBC	Tim Holtz - Distress Sprayer Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC
Tim Holtz - Stampers Anonymous Splat Box Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Waffle Flower - Mini Media Mat Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Ranger - Artist brush set Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Sizzix - Big Shot machine Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC
Sizzix - Sidekick machine Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Thermoweb iCraft - Purple tape for die-cutting - 1 1/2" Shop at: AZ (UK)	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (maxi) Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (small) Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC

DCM - Crowning Glory

Good morning!

It's a brand-new challenge over on the Daring Cardmakers blog, inspired by the phrase "Crowning Glory".

Well, what better excuse to give the brand-new release from The Greetery its first outing:

Stamp and stencil combo: The Greetery - Takes the Cake
Stamps: The Greetery - Sparkler Background
Dies: The Greetery - Takes the Cake, The Greetery - Takes the Cake Banner, The Greetery - Takes the Cake Floral Details, The Greetery - Takes the Cake Stand, Spellbinders - Fluted Classics Rectangles, The Greetery - Bold Numbers, The Greetery - Twisted Crepe

I used the new Takes the Cake product suite, which includes stencils, stamps, and various coordinating dies to create all the elements of the cake.

I used glitter cardstock for the fancy icing details, and metallic cardstock for the cake stand and the numbers crowning the cake.

I just love the colour and design possibilities of this product suite. :D

I also used the Sparkler background stamp as the backdrop for the cake, combined with the Fluted rectangle dies from Spellbinders.

As a finishing touch, I added Twisted Crêpe streamers behind the cake.

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

Happy crafting!

---

The Greetery - Takes the Cake stamps and stencils Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Sparkler Background stamp Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Takes the Cake Banner die Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Takes the Cake dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG
The Greetery - Takes the Cake Floral Details dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Takes the Cake Stand dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	Spellbinders - Fluted Classics Rectangles dies Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	The Greetery - Bold Numbers dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG
The Greetery - Twisted Crepe dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Stamp Market - Cactus 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 - Peony ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Rosy ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Sea Glass ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Sunshine ink pad Shop at: MISC
The Stamp Market - Tropic Teal ink pad Shop at: MISC	Versafine - Onyx Black ink pad Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Neenah Classic Crest 110 lb smooth Solar White cardstock Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH	Lawn Fawn - Gold metallic cardstock Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)
Lawn Fawn - Silver metallic cardstock Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Memory Box - Delicate Pastel glitter pad Shop at: MISC	Tombow - Mono-Multi liquid glue Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH	Ranger - Glossy Accents Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC
Lawn Fawn - Stamp shammy cleaner Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	MISTI stamping tool Shop at: EH | SBC	Craft blending brushes Shop at: AZ (UK)	Detail blending brushes Shop at: AZ (UK)
Waffle Flower - Mini Media Mat Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Sizzix - Big Shot machine Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Sizzix - Sidekick machine Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Thermoweb iCraft - Purple tape for die-cutting - 1 1/2" Shop at: AZ (UK)
Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (maxi) Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (small) Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC

DCM - May Elemental Inspiration

Morning!

It's a new elemental inspiration challenge over on the Daring Cardmakers blog this week, and here's the image Shabneez chose as inspiration:

The three elements I went with were citrus fruit, a riff on the colour palette using aqua blue in the background, and a group of three elements (like the bananas):

Stamps: The Stamp Market - Citrus Vine (r)
Dies: The Stamp Market - Citrus Vine (r), The Stamp Market - Jumbo Tag

I started out by die-cutting and then stamping all the Citrus Vine elements using the inks listed below on white cardstock.

I really wanted those lemons to pop and there's a book cover that always catches my eye when I see it recommended on audible, it's the cover for Simple Pleasures by Claire Chambers which features bright oranges against a teal background.

So I grabbed some Tropic Teal cardstock to run through my Big Shot with the Jumbo Tag die. I also cut the sentiment from that die set in the bottom left corner and added some white cardstock behind it and for the hole reinforcer.

The blue really pops against the pink cardstock which matches the pink I'd used for the first ink layer of the flowers, so that's what I used for my base.

And there we go, card done.

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 - Citrus Vine stamps (r) Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Citrus Vine dies (r) Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Jumbo Tag dies Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Bubblegum ink pad Shop at: MISC
The Stamp Market - Cheeky ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Cotton Candy ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Golden ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Greenery ink pad Shop at: MISC
The Stamp Market - Leafy ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Sunshine ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Umber ink pad Shop at: MISC	Neenah Classic Crest 110 lb smooth Solar White cardstock Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH
The Stamp Market - Cotton Candy cardstock Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Tropic Teal cardstock Shop at: MISC	Lawn Fawn - Stamp shammy cleaner Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	MISTI stamping tool Shop at: EH | SBC
Sizzix - Big Shot machine Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Sizzix - Sidekick machine Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Thermoweb iCraft - Purple tape for die-cutting - 1 1/2" Shop at: AZ (UK)	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (maxi) Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC
Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (small) Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC

DCM - A bunch of...

Morning,

This week over on the Daring Cardmakers Blog, Joanne has set us the challenge of featuring a bunch of something on our cards... with no lovely coconuts in my stash (that I know of!) I immediately reached for the Modern Layered Floral set from Pinkfresh Studio:

Stamps: Pinkfresh Studio - Modern Layered Floral (r)
Dies: Pinkfresh Studio - Modern Layered Floral (r), Spellbinders - Fluted Classics Rectangles, The Greetery - Fit to Be Tied, The Greetery - PreText Banners

This colour palette is a bit of a departure for me, but I wanted to try something new. It was also the first outing for my new set of Spellbinders Fluted Classics Rectangles dies. I only became aware of this design during the warehouse sale, but the rectangles weren't available and that was the set I knew I'd use the most. I managed to track down a set on Amazon and snagged them. They arrived just in time for some weekend crafting. :)

I used the two shades of blue from the bouquet to create a watercolour wash as the backdrop to the bouquet. Then went with Golden Yellow for that Fluted background.

I cut one of the bows from the Fit to Be Tied set from The Greetery from white cardstock and metallic gold cardstock and offset them slightly, tying the bouquet together and adding a droplet accent to the middle of the bow.

The sentiment is from the same stamp set as the flowers, and there was just enough space to add it on a little banner.

And that's it!

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

Happy crafting!

---

Pinkfresh Studio - Modern Layered Floral stamps (r) Shop at: MISC | SBC	Pinkfresh Studio - Modern Layered Floral die (r) Shop at: MISC	Spellbinders - Fluted Classics Rectangles dies Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	The Greetery - Fit to Be Tied dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG
The Greetery - PreText Banners dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	Lawn Fawn - Ballet Slippers ink pad Shop at: SHC (UK)	Lawn Fawn - Bubblegum ink pad Shop at: SHC (UK)	Lawn Fawn - Forget-Me-Not ink pad Shop at: SHC (UK)
Lawn Fawn - Kiddie Pool ink pad Shop at: SHC (UK)	Lawn Fawn - Mermaid ink pad Shop at: SHC (UK)	Lawn Fawn - Sunflower ink pad Shop at: SHC (UK)	Versafine - Onyx Black ink pad Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC | SHC (UK)
Neenah Classic Crest 110 lb smooth Solar White cardstock Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH	The Stamp Market - Golden cardstock Shop at: MISC	Lawn Fawn - Gold metallic cardstock Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Tim Holtz - 4.25 x 5.5 Distress Watercolor Cardstock Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC
Lawn Fawn - Stamp shammy cleaner Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Tim Holtz - Distress Sprayer Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Tim Holtz - Stampers Anonymous Splat Box Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Waffle Flower - Mini Media Mat Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)
Royal Langnickel - Zen watercolour round wash brush set Shop at: AZ (UK)	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) | EH | SBC
Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (small) Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC

DCM - Birds of a Feather

Happy Friday!

It's my turn to set the challenge over on the Daring Cardmakers blog this week, and as the name suggests, our cards need to feature feathers or something feathered.

Well, this was a good opportunity for me to dust off my new Jumbo Curiosity Feathers from The Greetery's latest release. A good job, as I see a new release is on its way next week"

Once again, the ideas I had in my mind went a very different way once I got crafting.

Stamp: The Greetery - Curio Labels
Dies: Honey Bee Stamps - Wood Frame Builder, The Greetery - Curio: Divider and Details II, The Greetery - Curio: Spring Findings, The Greetery - Jumbo Curiosity Feathers, The Greetery - PreText Banners, The Greetery - Winter Medley
Other: Gansai Tambi watercolours, Distress Oxides, Distress Ink

I started out by cutting feathers with the original Curio Spring Findings set and the new jumbo feathers, which are just bigger versions of those same dies, from watercolour cardstock with the intention of painting them with Distress Ink or even my watercolours.

But then I looked over at my swatch book of Distress Oxides and thought it would be easier to colour them using ink daubers and the ink that was already on them, and that's what I did. Adding lots of black and white pen speckles once the feathers were dry.

But there was still scope for watercolour paint!

I created a wash on a panel of watercolour paper, mainly using Wild Honey, Peeled Paint, and Weathered Wood Distress ink, and drying the paper between washes. But it still looked a bit bland. I remembered I had some Cosmic Shimmer Pixie Sparkles that I bought in a sale last year, and thought this was a good time to experiment with them.

The Pixie Sparkles add an iridescent finish to the wash, but also have clumps of pigment in them that moves with water. It's hard to photograph the end effect, and you can't see much of the background on my card, but it looks very reminiscent of a very early Basic Grey collection that was all graphic washed out prints with a bit of a skateboard/scientific sort of theme on this bleached yellow paper that reminded me of books I got in Poland back in the 80s... 

But I digress, I ultimately chose to use the Curio Divider and Details II die to create spaces to showcase the feathers and other curio elements, plus the odd bit of greenery from the Winter Medley die set.

I gave the little inserts for the Divider die the watercolour treatment too, and added a very liberal splattering of copper paint to each.

There is no shortage of splatter on this project, that's for sure!

After attaching the divider dies to my card base, I added a woodgrain frame using the wonderful set from Honeybee Designs that can be adapted to different card sizes.

Once the frame was in place, it was time to add all the details and finish the card off with some gold paint around the frame and a simple sentiment.

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

Happy crafting!

---

The Greetery - Curio Labels stamps Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	Honey Bee Stamps - Wood Frame Builder dies Shop at: EH | MISC | SBC	The Greetery - Curio: Divider and Details II dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Curio: Spring Findings dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG
The Greetery - Jumbo Curiosity Feathers dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - PreText Banners dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Winter Medley dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	Versafine - Onyx Black ink pad Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC | SHC (UK)
Neenah Classic Crest 110 lb smooth Solar White cardstock Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH	Tim Holtz - 4.25 x 5.5 Distress Watercolor Cardstock Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Kuretake Gansai Tambi 36-pan watercolour set Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Cosmic Shimmer - Pixie Sparkles - Flirty Sky Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC
Uniball Signo White pen Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	3M Scotch double-sided foam tape Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH	Lawn Fawn - Stamp shammy cleaner Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Sponge daubers Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC
Tim Holtz - Distress Sprayer Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Tim Holtz - Stampers Anonymous Splat Box Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Waffle Flower - Mini Media Mat Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Ranger - Artist brush set Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC
Royal Langnickel - Zen watercolour round wash brush set Shop at: AZ (UK)	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) | EH | SBC
Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (small) Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC

DCM - Bloom and Grow

Good morning!

It's time for a new challenge over on the Daring Cardmakers blog, and this week Dawn is challenging us to feature garden blooms on our cards.

I had something very different in mind for my card, but things took a different turn...

Stamps: The Greetery - Sprinkled With Kindness, The Stamp Market - Handpainted Garden (r), Pinkfresh Studio - Chevron
Dies: The Greetery - Sprinkled With Kindness, The Stamp Market - Handpainted Garden (r), The Greetery - Crimped Slimline, The Stamp Market - Postage Stamp 
Stencils: The Greetery - Mason Jar Fillers

I started out by stamping out all the blooms and foliage in the Handpainted Garden set from The Stamp Market. I am ashamed to say this was the first outing for this floral set, and it is now discontinued. I went with a blend of coral tones for the peonies and aqua blue for the smaller florals.

But once I'd stamped everything out, I found that I only really needed the smaller florals for my card.

I used the watering can from the Sprinkled with Kindness set by The Greetery to hold all the flowers, but before I stuck it down to my postage stamp cardstock panel, I stencilled some of the Mason Jar Fillers florals and leaves on the background to add a bit of depth.

I really couldn't decide what colour background to use as my card base, so in the end I pulled out the rainbow background I'd previously stamped with the Chevron stamp from Pinkfresh Studio and thought it went rather well with the dark aqua tones of the watering can.

Finally, I stamped a sentiment from the Sprinkled with Kindness set on a banner strip that is included in the Crimped Slimline dies from The Greetery and added some more floral details to the edge along with a little gold washi tape.

I finished the card off with some sequins among the stencilled florals.

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

Until next time, happy crafting!

---

The Greetery - Sprinkled With Kindness stamps Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Stamp Market - Handpainted Garden stamps (r) Shop at: MISC	Pinkfresh Studio - Chevron background stamp Shop at: MISC | SBC	The Greetery - Sprinkled With Kindness die Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG
The Stamp Market - Handpainted Garden dies (r) Shop at: MISC	The Greetery - Crimped Slimline dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Stamp Market - Postage Stamp dies Shop at: MISC	The Greetery - Mason Jar Fillers stencils Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG
Lawn Fawn - Ballet Slippers ink pad Shop at: SHC (UK)	Lawn Fawn - Noble Fir ink pad Shop at: SHC (UK)	The Stamp Market - Blush Pink ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Cactus ink pad Shop at: MISC
The Stamp Market - Coastal ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Emerald Isle ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Golden ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Greenery ink pad Shop at: MISC
The Stamp Market - Jade ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Julep ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Lagoon ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Matcha ink pad Shop at: MISC
The Stamp Market - Minty ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Papaya ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Peony ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Salmon ink pad Shop at: MISC
The Stamp Market - Sea Glass ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Tropic Teal ink pad Shop at: MISC	Versafine - Onyx Black ink pad Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Neenah Classic Crest 110 lb smooth Solar White cardstock Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH
Altenew - Golden Edge washi tape Shop at: MISC | SBC	Tombow - Mono-Multi liquid glue Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH	Lawn Fawn - Stamp shammy cleaner Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	MISTI stamping tool Shop at: EH | SBC
Craft blending brushes Shop at: AZ (UK)	Detail blending brushes Shop at: AZ (UK)	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) | EH | SBC	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (small) Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC

DCM - April elemental inspiration

Good morning!

Over on the Daring Cardmakers blog this week, Dawn has picked the elemental inspiration image for us to work with:

And here are the elements I went with: Toadstools, a woodland creature, banner element

Stamp and stencil combo: The Greetery - Print Shop: Floral Frame
Stamp: The Greetery - Tear Strip Tag Spring
Dies: The Greetery - Print Shop: Floral Frame, The Greetery - Tear Strip Tags, The Greetery - BotaniCuts Toadstool Garden, The Greetery - Bunny Kisses

I absolutely loved this excuse to get my BotaniCuts Toadstool Garden dies out again, but give them the spring treatment.

I went with a mix of grey tones to blend on cream cardstock and once my toadstools were assembled I added pencil shading and lots of dots using a white pen.

I then got to work on stencilling the Floral Frame with more muted spring shades to go with the neutral background I'd chosen for my card base.

Once all the stamped details were added I attached the frame and toadstools to my card base then cut the new Bunny Kisses die from Ivory cardstock, using a jewel picker to add the nose, cheek, and ear details.

I also added some fluffy stuff to create the bunny's cotton tail.

Finally, for my sentiment, I used one of the new greetings from the Tear Strip Tag Spring set stamped in grey ink on the coordinating tag die.

And there we have it, a slightly different Spring card.

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 Greetery - Print Shop: Floral Frame stamps and stencils Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Tear Strip Tag Spring stamps Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Print Shop: Floral Frame die Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Tear Strip Tags dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG
The Greetery - BotaniCuts Toadstool Garden dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Bunny Kisses dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	Altenew - Dark Chocolate dye ink Shop at: EH | MISC	Altenew - Evening Gray dye ink Shop at: MISC
Altenew - Mango Smoothie dye ink Shop at: MISC	Lawn Fawn - Hippo ink pad Shop at: SHC (UK)	Lawn Fawn - Sage Leaf ink pad Shop at: SHC (UK)	The Stamp Market - Blush Pink ink pad Shop at: MISC
The Stamp Market - Cheeky ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Cobalt ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Fern ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Matcha ink pad Shop at: MISC
The Stamp Market - Sea Glass ink pad Shop at: MISC	Altenew - Warm Gray ink cube set Shop at: MISC | SHC (UK)	Bazzill Cardshoppe - Butter Mints Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH	Bazzill Cardshoppe - Taffy Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | MISC
Neenah Classic Crest 110 lb smooth Solar White cardstock Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH	Cosmic Shimmer - Fluffy Stuff Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Brutfuner 120 Colouring Pencils Set Shop at: AZ (UK)	Uniball Signo White pen Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC
Zig - Wink of Stella glitter brush pen - Clear Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Marvy Jewel Picker Shop at: AZ (UK)	Ranger - Multi-Medium Matte adhesive Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC | TG	Tombow - Mono-Multi liquid glue Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH
Lawn Fawn - Stamp shammy cleaner Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	MISTI stamping tool Shop at: EH | SBC	Craft blending brushes Shop at: AZ (UK)	Detail blending brushes Shop at: AZ (UK)
Waffle Flower - Mini Media Mat Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	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) | EH | SBC
Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (small) Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC

DCM - Number It

Good morning!

It's hard to believe we've reached the end of March, the month has flown by for me!

This week, Shabneez has set the challenge over on the Daring Cardmakers blog and wants us to create a card featuring a number or lots of numbers.

Well, as you know it's the year of 50th birthdays for my circle of friends, so here is the next card I made on my list:

Stamps: The Greetery - Always in Bloom, The Greetery - Everyday Labels
Stencils: The Greetery - Always in Bloom
Dies: The Greetery - Always in Bloom, The Greetery - Cake Pops Banner, The Greetery - Handmade Labels, The Greetery - Bold Numbers, The Greetery - Crimped Slimline

I already had a few ideas in mind for this card, and thought it would be a good opportunity to combine a slimline design with some bright florals.

I started out by cutting the slimline panel using the Crimped Slimline die from The Greetery and then taped it down to my work surface so I could stencil the Always in Bloom background florals on both ends of the panel, leaving a gap in the middle where I would later add the sentiment focal point.

I added the stamped details to the florals and set the panel aside while I worked out what elements I'd use for the sentiment.

Well, of course, it had to be the Bold Numbers from The Greetery cut in gold cardstock again! I am really getting my money's worth out of this number set at the moment. :)

I also stamped some of the Always in Bloom die-cut details in pastel shades to add extra floral details.

Then I had the light bulb moment, I could pop the numbers up on the Cake Pops Banner die from The Greetery and have everything springing out of the Everyday Labels birthday sentiment.

I used bright pink cardstock for my card base and added pearlescent sequins once everything was assembled.

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 Greetery - Always in Bloom stamps Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Everyday Labels stamps Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Always in Bloom dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Cake Pops Banner dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG
The Greetery - Handmade Labels dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Bold Numbers dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Crimped Slimline dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Always in Bloom stencils Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG
Lawn Fawn - Ballet Slippers ink pad Shop at: SHC (UK)	Lawn Fawn - Celery stick ink pad Shop at: SHC (UK)	Lawn Fawn - Freshly Cut Grass ink pad Shop at: SHC (UK)	The Stamp Market - Cheeky ink pad Shop at: MISC
The Stamp Market - Golden ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Greenery ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Matcha ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Rosy ink pad Shop at: MISC
The Stamp Market - Sea Glass ink pad Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Sunshine ink pad Shop at: MISC	Versafine - Onyx Black ink pad Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Bazzill Cardshoppe - Marshmallow Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC
Lawn Fawn - Gold metallic cardstock Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Ranger - Glossy Accents Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Tombow - Mono-Multi liquid glue Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Lawn Fawn - Stamp shammy cleaner Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)
MISTI stamping tool Shop at: EH | SBC	Craft blending brushes Shop at: AZ (UK)	Detail blending brushes Shop at: AZ (UK)	Taylored Expressions - Blender Brushes Shop at: MISC
Waffle Flower - Mini Media Mat Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Sizzix - Big Shot machine Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (maxi) Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (small) Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC

DCM - Little Ones

Morning!

This week over on the Daring Cardmakers blog, Miri is challenging us to make a card for the little people in our life or feature little images/letters.

Well, as I am still in my Spring crafting zone, I decided it was time to dig out some Whittle dies from Poppy Stamps for my card.

Paper: Pebbles - Spring Fling (r)
Stamp: Memory Box - Springtime Typewriter Sentiments (r)
Dies: Hello Bluebird - Holly and Pine, Poppy Stamps - Whittle Rabbit (r), PTI - Tag Sale #10, The Greetery - Big Branches Eucalyptus

I started out by covering my card base in the pretty daisy paper from the Spring Fling Pebbles collection. For the tag element, I used the kraft gingham paper from this same collection and raided my cardstock scraps for the frame and background to the tag.

I cut the Whittle Rabbit from watercolour cardstock for a little texture, and coloured it in with Copics.

For a pop of spring greenery, I took one of the Eucalyptus branches that I'd cut from green Bazzill cardstock, inked it with some darker green ink, and splattered it with white ink. Once dry, I arranged it behind the tag and assembled the rest of the card elements.

As a finishing touch, I stamped the Springtime sentiment on cream cardstock and cut the bow from bright yellow cardstock in my stash, adding a teeny button for good measure.

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

Happy crafting!

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Memory Box - Springtime Typewriter Sentiments stamps (r) Shop at: MISC	Hello Bluebird - Holly and Pine dies Shop at: MISC	Poppy Stamps - Whittle Rabbit die (r) Shop at: MISC	PTI - Tag Sale #10 dies Shop at: MISC
The Greetery - Big Branches Eucalyptus die Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Stamp Market - Forest ink pad Shop at: MISC	Versafine - Onyx Black ink pad Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Bazzill Cardshoppe - Butter Mints Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH
Dr. Pj. Martin's Bleed Proof White watercolour Shop at: AZ (UK)	Tombow - Mono-Multi liquid glue Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH	Lawn Fawn - Stamp shammy cleaner Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	MISTI stamping tool Shop at: EH | SBC
Craft blending brushes Shop at: AZ (UK)	Sponge daubers Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Tim Holtz - Distress Sprayer Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Tim Holtz - Stampers Anonymous Splat Box Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC | SHC (UK)
Waffle Flower - Mini Media Mat Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Ranger - Artist brush set Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | 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) | EH | SBC	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (small) Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC

DCM - Spots and Stripes

Good morning!

This week's Daring Cardmakers challenge is all about spots and stripes!

And as my Easter cards won't make themselves, I decided to put the spotlight on some old stash for my next spring project.

Paper: My Mind's Eye - Jack & Jill (r), My Mind's Eye - Mary Mary (r)
Stamps: Lil' Inker Designs - Egg & Flower (r), Simon Says Stamp - Tiny Words Birthday
Dies: Lil' Inker Designs - Dual Stitched Egg & Easter Greeting (r), The Greetery - Sentiment Suite Basics, Pinkfresh Studio - Artistic Bows, PTI - Pinking Shears, The Stamp Market - Jumbo Tag

I found some offcuts of paper from some old "Spring" collections from My Mind's Eye, really miss the quality and thickness of these papers. They are so luxurious.

The stripes were quite busy, but work great as a backdrop to the rest of the card. Then another sheet of paper with tiny dots on it was the perfect neutral for the Jumbo Tag from The Stamp Market.

And as my Easter element, I used the now retired Egg stamps and dies from Lil' Inker Designs. I stamped onto the egg and Easter sentiment onto minty blue cardstock and heat embossed the images in white. I then went over the white heat embossing with some Minty Fresh ink and filled in the lettering with a Wink of Stella pen.

I also found some lovely spring yellow spotty paper in my stash of My Mind's Eye that went nicely with the egg. I added a white pinked edge as an extra detail to make the focus of the card stand out more, and I just love a fancy edge on spring and Easter cards.

Finally, I added a tiny sentiment into the layers and finished off the card with a kraft bow and button.

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

Happy crafting!

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Lil' Inker Designs - Egg & Flower stamps (r) Shop at: MISC	Simon Says Stamp - Tiny Words Birthday stamps Shop at: MISC	Lil' Inker Designs - Dual Stitched Egg & Easter Greeting dies (r) Shop at: MISC	The Greetery - Sentiment Suite Basics dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG
Pinkfresh Studio - Artistic Bows dies Shop at: MISC | SBC	PTI - Pinking Shears border die Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Jumbo Tag dies Shop at: MISC	Lawn Fawn - Black Licorice ink pad Shop at: SHC (UK)
Lawn Fawn - Minty Fresh ink pad Shop at: SHC (UK)	Versamark ink pad Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SHC (UK)	Concord & 9th - Assorted cardstock pack Shop at: EH | MISC | SHC (UK)	Hero Arts - White embossing powder Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC | SHC (UK)
Zig - Wink of Stella glitter brush pen - Clear Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Tombow - Mono-Multi liquid glue Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	EK Success powder tool Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Lawn Fawn - Stamp shammy cleaner Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)
MISTI stamping tool Shop at: EH | SBC	Craft blending brushes Shop at: AZ (UK)	Waffle Flower - Mini Media Mat Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	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) | EH | SBC	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (small) Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC

DCM - March elemental inspiration

Morning!

Well, we've rolled into March and spring is definitely on the way!

It's time for a brand-new elemental inspiration challenge over on the Daring Cardmakers blog, and Miri has picked this wonderful image for us:

The elements I went with were: spring colours, bird's nest, blossom, and a coiled element

Stamp: Memory Box - Springtime Typewriter Sentiments (r)
Dies: The Greetery - Sentiment Suite Basics, Pinkfresh Studio - Diagonal Stitched Rectangles, The Greetery - BotaniCuts Wildflower Mix, The Greetery - Curio: Spring Findings, The Greetery - Curio: Summer Findings, The Stamp Market - Embroidery Hoops, The Stamp Market - Tiny Tags

This card definitely isn't a quick one, but it can be completed in stages and is a good way to binge listen to an audiobook or podcast while you work.

The first step was to cut out various Curio Spring and Summer Findings from The Greetery that would work nicely for a spring theme. I used a whole host of Distress Oxides to add colour to the elements with sponge daubers. I realised I'd also need some extra floral details from the BotaniCuts Wildflower Mix to add another pop of colour.

Once all the elements were dry, I added detail with pencils, a black pen, and white gel pen.

Next up, I cut a piece of watercolour paper a bit larger than an A2 card base and painted a wash of Saltwater Taffy over most of the area, adding splatters of Wild Honey and Peeled Paint for that spring feel.

Once the watercolour wash was dry, I cut out a background panel with the large diagonal stitched rectangle die from Pinkfresh Studio.

I cut a selection of small tags and a tiny embroidery hoop die from my left over watercolour paper.

I threaded twine through the holes of the tags and coloured the wooden hoop in with a Sharpie pen.

I then took my sweet time arranging all the curio elements on the tags and working out where they would end up.

Once I was happy with the arrangement, I used scraps of cardstock to add dimension behind the tags so that they would really pop.

Finally, I stamped the spring sentiment on white cardstock and cut it out with another of the dies from the Sentiment Suite Basics set.

And tada, card complete!

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

Happy crafting!

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Memory Box - Springtime Typewriter Sentiments stamps (r) Shop at: MISC	The Greetery - Sentiment Suite Basics dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	Pinkfresh Studio - Diagonal Stitched Rectangles dies Shop at: MISC | SBC	The Greetery - BotaniCuts Wildflower Mix dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG
The Greetery - Curio: Spring Findings dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Greetery - Curio: Summer Findings dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	The Stamp Market - Embroidery Hoops dies Shop at: MISC	The Stamp Market - Tiny Tags dies Shop at: MISC
Distress ink pad - Peeled Paint Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Distress ink pad - Saltwater Taffy Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Distress ink pad - Wild Honey Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Distress Oxide ink pad - Aged Mahogany Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC
Distress Oxide ink pad - Black Soot Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Distress Oxide ink pad - Blueprint Sketch Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Distress Oxide ink pad - Bundled Sage Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Distress Oxide ink pad - Evergreen Bough Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC
Distress Oxide ink pad - Fossilized Amber Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Distress Oxide ink pad - Frayed Burlap Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Distress Oxide ink pad - Gathered Twigs Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Distress Oxide ink pad - Ground Espresso Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC
Distress Oxide ink pad - Lucky Clover Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Distress Oxide ink pad - Mowed Lawn Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Distress Oxide ink pad - Old Paper Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Distress Oxide ink pad - Peeled Paint Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC
Distress Oxide ink pad - Prize Ribbon Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Distress Oxide ink pad - Rustic Wilderness Shop at: EH | SBC	Distress Oxide ink pad - Salty Ocean Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Distress Oxide ink pad - Shabby Shutters Shop at: EH | SBC
Distress Oxide ink pad - Shaded Lilac Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Distress Oxide ink pad - Speckled Egg Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Distress Oxide ink pad - Spun Sugar Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Distress Oxide ink pad - Tattered Rose Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC
Distress Oxide ink pad - Twisted Citron Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Distress Oxide ink pad - Wilted Violet Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Versafine - Onyx Black ink pad Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Neenah Classic Crest 110 lb smooth Solar White cardstock Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH
Arches cold pressed watercolour paper Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH	Brutfuner 120 Colouring Pencils Set Shop at: AZ (UK)	Uniball Signo White pen Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Ranger - Multi-Medium Matte adhesive Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC
Tombow - Mono-Multi liquid glue Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Lawn Fawn - Stamp shammy cleaner Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	MISTI stamping tool Shop at: EH | SBC	Sponge daubers Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC
Tim Holtz - Distress Sprayer Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Tim Holtz - Stampers Anonymous Splat Box Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC | SHC (UK)	Waffle Flower - Mini Media Mat Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	Ranger - Artist brush set Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC
Royal Langnickel - Zen watercolour round wash brush set Shop at: AZ (UK)	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) | EH | SBC
Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (small) Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC

DCM - Treat Yourself!

Good morning all!

It's my turn to set the challenge over on the Daring Cardmakers Blog this week, and well I was totally inspired by Donna and Tom on Parks and Recreation, and had to go with the theme of "Treat Yourself!" ("It's the best day of the year!").

The treat featured on your card can be something that is a treat like a donut or other sweet treat, or you can use a crafty item that you have treated yourself to!

Last year I treated myself to the Spellbinders Stitched Petal Frame die set in the full knowledge that I would use it rarely, but I love the end result so much I couldn't pass it up.

And the colour possibilities are endless.

Stamp: Simon Says Stamp - Tiny Words Encouragement
Dies: Spellbinders - Stitched Petal Frame, The Greetery - PreText Banners

I used Taffy grey cardstock as the neutral colour for my frame, then picked some spring fresh pink and coral tones for the blooms and pretty greens and greys for extra pop.

I used some of my ageing supply of Prima pearls and gems to add extra glitz to the stitched details, and once mounted on a white card base, finished the card off with a tiny sentiment stamped on a cream cardstock banner.

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

Happy crafting!

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Simon Says Stamp - Tiny Words Encouragement stamps Shop at: MISC	Spellbinders - Stitched Petal Frame dies Shop at: MISC | SBC	The Greetery - PreText Banners dies Shop at: SHC (UK) | TG	Versafine - Onyx Black ink pad Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC
Bazzill Cardshoppe - Butter Mints Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH	Bazzill Cardshoppe - Marshmallow Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Bazzill Cardshoppe - Taffy Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | MISC	Ranger - Glossy Accents Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC
Tombow - Mono-Multi liquid glue Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Lawn Fawn - Stamp shammy cleaner Shop at: EH | SBC | SHC (UK)	MISTI stamping tool Shop at: EH | SBC	Sizzix - Big Shot machine Shop at: AZ (UK) | SBC
Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (maxi) Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC	Tim Holtz - Tonic guillotine trimmer (small) Shop at: AZ (UK) | EH | SBC