The Stamp Review Crew features Sprinkles of Life

It’s an exciting day! A few weeks ago I woke to a lovely email inviting me to join The Stamp Review Crew blog hop design team. What an honour. Of course I said yes. So without further ado, here is my very first post for The Stamp Review Crew.

This blog hop features Sprinkles of Life, this year’s charity stamp set. For every set purchased, Stampin’ Up! donates $3 to Ronald McDonald House Charities. How fab. I know I’ve raved about the versatility of the set before, but honestly, nothing comes close especially when you throw in the coordinating Tree Builder punch!

 

I’ve gone with the cupcake theme for my project and have made a little box with a cupcake on the front. Perfect for giving a birthday cupcake or filling with something else.

The box is made from Sweet L’il Things DSP using the Baker’s Box thinlits – my new ‘go to’ tool for cute little boxes. I then used the Sprinkles of Life stamp set to make the cupcake wrapper (base) and gave it a 3D effect by leaving some tabs on the side and adhering them to the box so that the wrapper itseld would be curved. I also made a sweet flag using a stamp from the set and adhering it to a toothpick.

The honeycomb style cupcake top is made from Cherry on Top Cotton Paper (Watermelon Wonder sheet). I punched out nine x ‘tops’ (it’s a good idea to use some scraps of paper behind the cotton paper as you punch) and then systematically adhered them with 1/4 of a mini glue dot. Yep – even the mini ones are too big. You can find a link to the honeycomb tutorial via this post.

The Baker’s Box thinlits come with various extras for closing the top of the box but today I’ve opted for a Mini Metallic silver peg, silver ribbon, silver thread and the crazy silver swirly stuff from the silver baker’s twine. Yes, I did use my entire arsenal of silver trims!

Thanks for stopping by and enjoying my first TSRC blog hop. Now you simply must hop on over to visit Ann Schach for more inspiration!

Or if you started here, you may wish to backtrack to Mike Funcke.

Jess x

 

Click the images to shop 24/7

Sprinkles Of Life Photopolymer Stamp Set [139971]	Tree Builder Punch [138295]	Baker’s Box Thinlits Dies [138279]
Sweet Li’l Things Designer Series Paper [138447]	Cherry On Top Cotton Paper Assortment [138308]	Very Vanilla A4 Card Stock [106550]
Silver 1/8″ Ribbon [132137]	Silver Metallic Thread [138402]	Silver Baker’s Twine [132976]

Other projects you might be interested in…

Heavenly Everleigh

I mentioned in my last post that you should stay tuned for more Timeless Love and here it is… already!

Last week, my brother and sister in law welcomed a sweet tiny pink bundle, Everleigh Jane. She is such a doll and weighed in at just 5lb 8oz. Holding her feels like you’re only holding the blankets! How blessed we are to have another happy, healthy family member.

Of course this calls for a card. I thought her name was super pretty but a little bit vintage so I wanted the card to reflect that. I was also a little short on time so I flicked through my Project Life cards to find a starting point. I chose a black and white background card that I thought would suit perfectly. I added a spray of watercoloured flowers from Timeless Love and a sweet little banner. To keep with the vintage theme and to personalise, I used my brand new Alphabet Rotary stamp (why did I wait so long to get that??).

Of course I matched the inside of the card as well which was very easy as I had to crop the PLxSU card to fit the front. This meant I had a cute little black and white strip to use on the inside. I stamped some Blushing Bride cradstock with the Timeless Love stamp to match.

Of course it’s nowhere near as perfect as tiny Everleigh is but I think it does the job!

Jess x

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Moments Like These Project Life Card Collection [138454]	Timeless Love Wood-Mount Stamp Set [138772]	Timeless Love Clear-Mount Stamp Set [139408]
Alphabet Rotary Stamp [133769]	Jet Black Stazon Ink Pad [101406]	Banner Punch [133519]
Blushing Bride Classic Stampin’ Pad [131172]	Calypso Coral Classic Stampin’ Pad [126983]	Card Stock A4 Blushing Bride [131287]

More Timeless Love projects…

Love & Sympathy

This week at CASEing the Catty, we’re looking at the Love and Sympathy section. Cards we love to make and cards that are not so fun but still touch others and show we care. Of course, just because a sample card is featured in this section, it doesn’t mean it has to be for love or sympathy. Simply change up a stamp set and it’s a Happy Birthday card instead!

As I’ve mentioned, one of my new favourite sets is Timeless Love. It’s just beautiful and I jumped at the chance to showcase it again this week. Despite loving all the catalogue samples featuring the set, I’ve opted to adapt a different card instead. The sample project is featured on page 29 and looks like this…

Two words. Pink stripes. I’m sold.

I also love the colour combo on this card and had an idea to combine the Timeless Love wreath with the doily. Once I got started, I found the Melon Mambo ink was a little too candy for my liking so I changed to Rose Red. I watercoloured all the flowers in the wreath in varying shades using this one ink colour. I took the Mint Macaron from the sample and used it for the wreath leaves and because I knew I’d be using the Sahara Sand Lace Trim, I used Sahara Sand ink for the flower centres. Initially I watercoloured the stripes in Rose Red but it was just too much so I opted for Sahara Sand instead. Clearly I cheated a bit and made my own background but you could use the English Garden DSP featured in the sample.

In the end my finished card was quite different but I think the sketch remains in tact.

Yep. I can’t get enough of this stamp set. You’d better stay tuned for more Timeless Love in the future!

Need more Love & Sympathy inspiration? Keep hopping along the blog hop to Stasia Sloma or head back to CASEing the Catty HQ to see a full list of participants.

Happy stamping (and sharing love),

Jess x

 

Click images to shop 24/7

Timeless Love Wood-Mount Stamp Set [138772]	Timeless Love Clear-Mount Stamp Set [139408]	Tea Lace Paper Doilies [129399]
Rose Red Classic Stampin’ Pad [126954]	Sahara Sand Classic Stampin’ Pad [126976]	Mint Macaron Classic Stampin’ Pad [138326]
Sahara Sand 7/8″ (2.2 Cm) Lace Trim [137866]	Dazzling Diamonds Glimmer Paper [135315]	Linen Thread [104199]

More Timeless Love projects…

A Simple Open Heart

Lately I’ve been making a big effort to simplify my workshop samples. I’m one who tends to love a more involved project but I’m conscious that many people find this a bit overwhelming, particularly if they’re just new to papercraft.

In the last edition of Stampin’ Up!’s demo magazine Impressions, there were some gorgeous samples featuring one of my favourite stamp sets An Open Heart. I think this set is so underrated and there aren’t that many samples around to inspire so I’m glad Stampin’ Up! featured this set.

I particularly liked this sample…

Emboss resist is such a WOW technique and whilst they suggested it just be a demo only card, I thought my next group of ladies would love to try it so I adjusted it a little to suit my needs and the supplies I had on hand. I chose to feature the new Tip Top Taupe and boy did it impress! I sold a TTT ink pad to almost half the attendees! I also wanted to change the sentiment to a punch as stamping on thin banners is a little daunting for beginners. I also swapped out the washi for a banner simply because I was still waiting on my new washi supplies to arrive. A butterfly embellishment made it a little more feminine.

Here’s our workshop creation…

It’s simple and sweet. Exactly what I was aiming for.

Jess x

Click on the product to shop 24/7

An Open Heart Wood-Mount Stamp Set [134999]	An Open Heart Clear-Mount Stamp Set [135002]	Versamark Pad [102283]
Tip Top Taupe A4 Cardstock [138343]	Card Stock A4 Soft Sky [131292]	Calypso Coral A4 Card Stock [124392]
White Stampin’ Emboss Powder [109132]	Typeset Specialty Designer Series Paper [133704]	Decorative Label Punch [120907]

More “An Open Heart” projects…

Endless Thanks… for CASEing the Catty

I am loving the ‘endless’ series of stamp sets Stampin’ Up! has given us lately. At Christmas there was Endless Wishes. In this catalogue there’s Endless Birthday and Endless Thanks. They are all similar and totally suit my style so it was a no brainer to select this set to showcase during CASEing the Catty‘s ‘Thanks’ week.

I particularly love Endless Thanks because of the little flowers and leaves and most of all the laurel half wreath. There’s so much potential and I hope to have a more in depth play in the next few weeks. For this post though, I’m CASEing the bottom, right card on the Thanks section title page.

I decided to create a few different versions of this card because the set is so versatile and you can never have too many thank you cards on hand!

There’s a Lost Lagoon, Watermelon Wonder and Mint Macaron version. Each with different phrases and washi tape from the Everyday Chic pack. I love that the photopolymer stamps can be bent and shaped on the block and I (attempted to) follow the curve of the banner. I also LOVE that super shiny, super thin Silver Thread just poking out behind the banner.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this leg of the hop! Click here to continue on to the wonderful Helen Heil for her inspirational project or here to return to CTC HQ.

Happy hopping,

Jess x

Click to SHOP

Endless Thanks Photopolymer Stamp Set [138796]	Everyday Chic Designer Washi Tape [138385]	Silver Metallic Thread [138402]
Lost Lagoon A4 Cardstock [133686]	Watermelon Wonder A4 Cardstock [138341]	Mint Macaron A4 Cardstock [138344]
Typeset Specialty Designer Series Paper [133704]	Island Indigo Classic Stampin’ Pad [126986]	Versamark Pad [102283]

Timeless Love in a hop

Every year there is one set in the catalogue that I often overlook on the first perusal but then it grabs me and I can’t get it out of my head until I order it, it arrives in the big brown box and I have a play. This year’s set is Timeless Love. I just LOVE the vintage style of the flowers as well as the font and sentiments.

I knew that my first play would involve some watercolouring. I know, I’m getting predictable. I wanted to try a style I hadn’t before so I stamped very lightly in Pink Pirouette just to give a slight outline of the flowers. Then I gave each of them a rough watercolour wash and then went back and added more colour and shading. I did want to keep the rustic vibe happening though so it’s purposefully not quite perfect. I loved the result without an outline so I kept it. Perhaps next time I’ll stamp over the top again.

I then added a layer of vellum to soften it even more with a stamped sentiment on top. My blog followers will know that I’m not a sentiment person. I don’t know why but I usually don’t add them to my cards. This one however, I LOVE. I love the font, I love the words, I love the meaning. So if you receive a card from me this year, there’s a chance it’ll have this sentiment on it! I then added some of the new Everyday Chic washi tape to the edges – it’s also a sneaky way of attaching the vellum without adhesive showing through. Finally I added a Calypso Coral seam binding ribbon, mounted it and I was done. And I love it!

I hope you like it too! See below for all the supplies I used. You can even click through to my store to buy straight away!

To see more inspiration from the new catalogue, continue along the EurekaStampers blog hop to our most divine, gorgeous and supportive leader, Simone Bartrum.

Happy hopping,

Jess x

 

Click on any product to shop

Timeless Love Wood-Mount Stamp Set [138772]	Timeless Love Clear-Mount Stamp Set [139408]	Sahara Sand A4 Card Stock [121695]
Pink Pirouette Classic Stampin’ Pad [126956]	Blushing Bride Classic Stampin’ Pad [131172]	Calypso Coral Classic Stampin’ Pad [126983]
Always Artichoke Classic Stampin’ Pad [126972]	Everyday Chic Designer Washi Tape [138385]	Calypso Coral 1/2″ Seam Binding Ribbon [134569]

Birthdays are back… at CASEing the Catty

A new catalogue means new inspiration and we’re back around to featuring Birthdays again at CASEing the Catty. My new birthday stamp set is still on its way to me so I’ve used an oldie, but still an awesome goodie, Amazing Birthday.

I chose to CASE the card below but substitute in a different stamp set and colour combo.

Have you ever chosen a colour combo simply because two of your inkpads were sitting next to each other and you thought they looked good together? That’s how this combo happened. I saw Cucumber Crush next to Blackberry Bliss and thought they were a perfect couple. I threw in some Pool Party as well to mellow things out.

Of course the end result is quite different but you can still see the sketch. And, you’ll never guess where those dots came from! I thought my card was a bit plain and needed some more ‘festive’. I was thinking confetti and searched for an appropriate stamp. The answer? The decorations/lights/dots stamp from Festival of Trees. Who says Christmas sets are only for Christmas?

Thanks for following along on the CASEing the Catty blog hop. Click here to visit the ever lovely Alison Barclay for more birthday inspiration or here to return to CTC headquarters.

Jess x

Click on image to buy 24/7

Amazing Birthday Wood-Mount Stamp Set [134225]	Amazing Birthday Clear-Mount Stamp Set [134228]	Festival Of Trees Photopolymer Stamp Set [135059]
Cucumber Crush Classic Stampin’ Pad [138324]	Pool Party Classic Stampin’ Pad [126982]	Blackberry Bliss Classic Stampin’ Pad [133642]
Whisper White A4 Card Stock [106549]	Cucumber Crush A4 Cardstock [138342]	Pool Party A4 Card Stock [124391]

More Amazing Birthday projects…

Simple Sympathy

I’ve got a big week ahead, including a funeral, a wedding and receiving 5 boxes of brand new Stampin’ Up! goodies. They’re not all for me but I love delivering the love!

First though, we’ll be farewelling my husband’s aunt. She passed away last week after a long battle with Alzheimer’s. So whilst it’s sad, it’s also somewhat eased by knowing she is at last free of her earthly broken body. I wanted to create some simple sympathy cards for members of our family just to remind them that they are definitely in our thoughts.

Generally I turn straight to An Open Heart for my sympathy cards but I wanted a flower for her daughter. I didn’t have anything I liked, so a quick google later, I had found some abstract flowers that I attempted to CASE. I had already chosen the Calypso Coral seam binding so I began my first flower in Calypso Coral ink. It’s so easy to watercolour with inks and you know for sure that it will match your embellishments. I then painted two more flowers in Night of Navy for some male family members. I added the ribbon and twine and then decided they needed another little something, so I added one of my favourite sentiments, “So much my heart would like to say”. I love this sentiment because I love to make cards but I’m often terrible at writing in them, yet my heart has much to say!

I know from experience that nothing I write can take away the ache but I hope they will be comforted knowing we are here to walk with them.

Be kind to yourself!

Jess x

Watercolor Paper [122959]	Crumb Cake Note Cards & Envelopes [133766]	Very Vanilla A4 Card Stock [106550]
Calypso Coral Classic Stampin’ Pad [126983]	Night Of Navy Classic Stampin’ Pad [126970]	Cucumber Crush Classic Stampin’ Pad [138324]
Calypso Coral 1/2″ Seam Binding Ribbon [134569]	Night Of Navy 1/2″ Seam Binding Ribbon [134571]	Linen Thread [104199]

Watercolour Lovely

I’ve cheated a little in today’s post. I haven’t done too much crafting in the last week as I’ve been putting things back in order after the craftermath of my big open house event A Day of Creativi-tea. It was fab but has taken a few days to recover!

I’d been itching a little to get back to creating and the other night I needed to make a quick encouragement card for a lovely friend. I decided to CASE myself and create something similar to the cards I’d made for the Creativi-tea make & take. I’m still on the watercolour wagon though and wanted to get a bit inky and artsy with it. I used my acylic block and markers to create the background and mounted my background on a Crumb Cake notecard. Love those little guys for super quick cards and envelopes.

Purty! I then prettied up the envelope with some hand lettering and oh-so trendy hand drawn laurel wreath pieces.

And what do you know? The good folk over at TGIF Challenges have a watercolour challenge this week. You should have a go and enter too 🙂

Happy creating, and giving, and encouraging!

Jess x

A Whole Lot Of Lovely Wood-Mount Stamp Set [138942]	Crumb Cake Note Cards & Envelopes [133766]	Watercolor Paper [122959]
Lost Lagoon Classic Stampin’ Pad [133644]	Sahara Sand Classic Stampin’ Pad [126976]	Crumb Cake Classic Stampin’ Pad [126975]
Versamark Pad [102283]	Silver Stampin’ Emboss Powder [109131]	Silver Glimmer Paper [135314]

Happy New Catalogue Day (plus how to get FREE stamps)!

Happy New Catalogue Day!

It’s that wonderful time of year when a brand new catalogue hits the store with lovely new products to get the creative juices flowing. You can visit the store to browse here or download the whole catalogue here (PDF).

But wait, there’s more! If you’ve got a big wish list or wanting to support your hobby financially, you should definitely consider joining Stampin’ Up! during June. On top of the usual super value starter kit (pay $169, choose $235 worth of product), you can choose an additional 2 stamp sets of your choice – any value! That’s now up to $415 for just $169. Throw aside all your pre-conceived ideas of what a demonstrator might be and click here for more information. Find out what a Stampin’ Up! demonstrator can be and what a demonstrator DOESN’T have to be!

Contact me for more information!

Jess x