Colour Creations – Pretty Peacock

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Another of the gorgeous new In Colours to share with you today.
And I love this one, too, such a gorgeous colour!  I think its my favourite of the new In Colours.
Ok, I will probably say that about all of them.
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I have been keeping busy over the last week or so, there is a Jazz Festival which is held locally at this time each year, and this year my son and I performed on two days with a visiting band.  So that has kept us busy practicing our parts and then performing.

Not that it has stopped me from crafting, I just didn’t have a lot of time for blogging, so that’s why I have been a little quiet.

On the subject of crafting….
Today’s card uses the totally gorgeous Pretty Peacock, combined with Bermuda Bay and Coastal Cabana.  Gorgeous, gorgeous, I love these colours!!
Pretty Peacock Butterflies
Butterflies from the Butterfly Gala stamp set have been heat embossed with white embossing powder, and then punched out with the matching Butterfly Duet punch.  The white layer behind the butterflies has been run through the Big Shot in the Pinewood Planks embossing folder.

Make sure you check out the rest of the Pretty Peacock inspiration by going to Catherine’s blog.

Happy Stamping!
Chris

Colour Creations – Rococo Rose

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With the new catalogue, comes new In Colours, so we are going to showcase those colours, and oh they are gorgeous!!
New Wonders 1
Today, we are showcasing Rococo Rose.
It is the darker pink in my card, but goes so beautifully with Blushing Bride, so I have used them together.
New Wonders Card 1
My card features a gorgeous new stamp set, called New Wonders, it is one of the exclusive Host sets, and is just perfect for some watercolouring.
First I stamped the image using Black Stazon ink, onto some Shimmery White cardstock, and then I have coloured it using ink pads and an Aqua Painter.
Isn’t she just too cute?

If you would like to see some more inspiration using Rococo Rose, head on over the Cathy’s blog where she has a list of everyone taking part.

Happy stamping,
Chris

2019 – 2020 Annual Catalogue

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StampinUpCatalog2019-533x640

Yes!  It’s here!
Are you as excited as I am?
So many gorgeous new things to get inspired by.
If you would like to have a look at the new catalogue online, you can do so by clicking here.
If you live in Australia, and don’t have a current demonstrator, but would like a copy of the catalogue, feel free to leave a message or send me an email, and I will send one out to you.
And here is a little inspiration for you, cards made with brand new products, or products that have carried over from the last catalogues.

First up, one of my absolute favourites from the catalogue, the Come Sail Away Suite, which you will find on pages 144-146 of the new catalogue.
I will be running a class using this one in July, so if you are local to me, make sure you book in for that one.  And I am looking at starting some Cards by Mail classes very soon, so stay tuned for that, too.
Come Sail Away Card 1

Another favourite is the gorgeous Designer Series Papers from the Perennial Essence Suite (Pages 106-108).  I just adore these papers, the colours and patterns, well, everything about them, they are totally gorgeous!
Perennial Essence Suite Card 1

Next we have the Bird Ballad Suite, which is on pages 90-92.
The birds are so lovely for colouring!
Bird Ballad Card 1

These gorgeous little ducks are from the Fable Friends stamp set, which carries over from the 2019 Occasions Catalogue.  And on the far left is some new Designer Series Papers from the Come Sail Away suite.  I love them, they are perfect for masculine cards.
Blue Ducks

If you would like to order any of the new products, you can do so by going to my online store.
Don’t forget that if your order is under $250 you can use the monthly Host code for June which is:  EFY37WNN
If your order is over $250 you get Host benefits all to yourself, and there are some lovely new Host stamp sets, one of which I will feature in a later post.

Happy Stamping!
Chris

Gorgeous Pink

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Winter has certainly arrived today here in our little town in Southern New South Wales, Australia.  We have every heater on in the house, and lots of warm snuggly clothes on.  It is cold, rainy, windy, stormy, and very dreary.  Definitely a day to stay inside.
So I thought I should make a card that is nice and bright and cheery.

My card today features another retiring stamp set, the very versatile Happy Birthday Gorgeous.

Pink HB Gorgeous Card
Other than those few Old Olive leaves, the only colour I have used on my card is Melon Mambo.  I have used the technique called “Stamping Off” to reduce the amount of ink on the stamp, making it into a lighter colour, and making it look like a number of different pink colours have been used, instead of just the one.
Then I have used Two Step stamping to stamp the raised flowers which I have fussy cut and layered over the top.

Tomorrow is the big day, the day when our gorgeous new Stampin’ Up! catalogue goes live, so make sure you come back, I have some cards made with new goodies to show you.
Happy stamping!  And stay warm if you are in the southern states of Australia.
Chris

Gingham Kitty

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Just the one card today, featuring the very cute Pretty Kitty Stamp set, which is retiring tomorrow.

Gingham Kitty

I have watercoloured around Kitty, leaving her white, and coloured the flowers using either Stampin’ Blends or Stampin’ Markers, and used the Gingham Gala papers (also retiring tomorrow) from the Occasions Catalogue.
Inspiration for this card came from the current sketch challenge at Freshly Made Sketches.
Happy Sunday stamping!
Chris

Sheet Music Stamp

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Sheet Music Card Set

Only a few days to go until the new Stampin’ Up! Annual Catalogue goes live, with all the new goodies.  And believe me, there are lots of gorgeous goodies in this one!
In the meantime, I am going to be sharing some cards using a few of the retiring ones, and today I enjoyed some carfty time making these cards with the Sheet Music background stamp.
As a musician, I love this stamp, it is real music, not just random notes, and it is so gorgeous for cards and scrapbook layouts, so I am personally sad to see this one retiring.
It will be one that stays in my personal stash though.
Here are the individual cards….
Sheet Music Card 1Sheet Music Card 2Sheet Music Card 4

And then I decided to go with some colour, and chose my favourite, Highland Heather.
The gorgeous butterfly is fussy cut from some retired Designer Series Papers, but they are too special to give away, so I am still using them.
Sheet Music Card 3

I am going to share my cards to some card Challenges:

Global Design Project – Birds, Bees and Butterflies
Stampin’ Up! Only Challenges – Masculine Project
CAS Colours and Sketches – Sketch Challenge with a focus on the sentiment
Fusion Card Challenge – Sketch Challenge
TGIF Challenges – Make a Set of Cards

I hope you are having a crafty weekend.
Happy Stamping!
Chris

Final Hugs

Posted in Cards, Paper Pumkin by

Hugs From Shelli Card 7
I have enjoyed sharing with you all the different cards I have made using the Hugs From Shelli Paper Pumpkin kit, I’m sure there are a lot more I can come up with, but since today is the last day it is available to buy, I will share something different after today.

Both of these cards use some of the patterned paper that was on the inside of the envelopes.
Hugs From Shelli Card 8
I was trying to get the flowers on the pink card to curve around a little more but it didn’t quite work out, but it’s still pretty.
The flowers have been stamped with Stazon ink and coloured with an Aqua Pen and ink pads, and then I fussy cut the flowers.
Yes, I did fussy cut all of those flowers!  Actually it didn’t take all that long, and I find colouring and cutting quite relaxing.

Well, it’s Friday afternoon here in Australia, and I have a new stamp set which arrived this afternoon, so I am going to have some fun playing with that over the weekend.
I hope you have a crafty weekend, too.
Happy stamping!
Chris

Lots of Hugs

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Yes, you guessed it, today I have some more cards that I made using the Hugs From Shelli, Paper Pumpkin kit.
I may seem to be a little obsessed with this kit!
But actually I really just love it, and enjoy the challenge of creating new ideas.

Hugs From Shelli Pink Flowers

I have used half of one of the original card fronts, and layered it over some Shimmer White cardstock which has been embossed using the retiring Petal Pair embossing folder.  And then popped one of the Die cut flowers that came in the kit, over the corner.  That little bit of Old Olive cardstock and ribbon just helps the leaves pop a little.

The next two cards use the same colour combo, of Pool Party and Crumb Cake.

Hugs from Shelli Card 5Hugs From Shelli Card 6

The first uses the Country Floral Embossing Folder in the background, and the second the Tin Tile Embossing Folder – both of them carrying over to the next catalogue.  Yay!!!!
Both of these cards make use of the envelopes from the kit, which I have cut up to create the sentiment layer, and also the patterned papers.
The top card just uses one envelope, and the second card has used one plus the flap off a second.

I have also used the stamp set to create a completely different look….

Hugs From Shelli Yellow Flowers
I have stamped the flower image repeatedly on a piece of white cardstock, using Early Espresso ink, then coloured each flower with Stampin Blends.
The gorgeous little bird is part of a stamp from a new stamp set called Free As A Bird.  It is a beautiful stamp set, part of the Bird Ballad Suite.

I hope there is something there to inspire you to get creative today.
Happy Stamping!
Chris

Vintage Hugs

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Hugs From Shelli Vintage 2
I just had to do it!
I had to make a Vintage style card out of the gorgeous Hugs From Shelli Paper Pumpkin kit, I just couldn’t help myself.
The different elements in the kit do lend themselves to a vintagey feel.
Hugs From Shelli Vintage 3
I have used the retiring (sadly) Sheet Music background stamp to add some music images onto the background of the lighter coloured parts.  To do this, I didn’t mount the stamp onto a block, but just splodged some ink (that’s a technical term, by the way) onto part of the stamp and then rolled it, kind of randomly, onto the cardstock.

The edges have been distressed and then sponged with Early Espresso ink.
And I have coloured the main birds nest image.  The nest and leaves were coloured with Stampin’ Blends (Alcohol Ink Markers) in Old Olive and Crumb Cake, the eggs were coloured using Blender Pen and ink pad in Balmy Blue, and the tiny flower dots were coloured using a Flirty Flamingo Stampin’ Write Marker.

Hugs From Shelli Vintage 1

I’ve added some of the new, soon to be released Scalloped Lace Trim, some of the gorgeous Velvet ribbon that was in the kit, and some pearls, and then fussy cut one of the stamped bird images from the kit, which has also been coloured with Crumb Cake.
I enjoyed make the card so much that I decided to make a bookmark to match it.

Hugs From Shelli Vintage 4
These ones have been sent off to someone who I know will appreciate them, but I really loved them, so decided to make myself a book mark, too.
After all, I need heaps of bookmarks to go inside the new catalogue!!!!
Hugs From Shelli Vintage 5
Instead of using the gorgeous Pretty Peacock for this one (as I did above), I have used Rococo Rose, both of these are new In Colours, and I can’t wait to use more of these colours.  So gorgeous!
Hugs From Shelli Vintage 6

I may attempt to use something other than the Hugs From Shelli kit soon, maybe…….

It’s so gorgeous, and I am making the most of it for this month, so only a couple more days to go 🙂
Happy stamping!
Chris

Hugs From Shelli Paper Pumpkin

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Paper Pumpkin kits have only been available in North America, but this month we have been able to get the May 2019 edition here in Australia.
And I am so happy about it, because it is beautiful!
I held a class on Saturday, and we made the four different cards that are in the kit.
I have slightly modified them from the originals, adding some layers to them, but keeping them at the smaller gift card size, so that they can still go inside the gorgeous envelopes.
HugsFromShelliPPCards
Such gorgeous colours, and I love the font used for the words.
Here are the cards individually…
HugsFromShelli Card 2HugsFromShelli Card 4Hugs from Shelli Card 3HugsFromShelliKit Card 1

All of the ladies doing my class loved this kit, well, what’s not to love?  It’s just gorgeous!
It’s a one off in Australia, and only available while stocks last, so if you would like to order one, just pop over to my online store.
I have heaps more cards that I have made using this kit, so stay tuned.
Happy stamping!
Chris