I’m feeling a little tired and in need of some down time, so I will take a break from the sketches for a day or two, but I will be finishing off the rest of the sketches.
In the meantime, don’t forget the awesome sale on gorgeous papers, for the rest of August, or until sold out.
If you live in Australia and would like to make the most of this sale, you can shop online here.
Happy stamping,
Chris
Welcome back to the Annual Catalogue sketches, today we are on Sketch number 13.
My card today is an ocean scene which I am not entirely happy with, but that happens. Even those of us who are demonstrators and do a lot of papercrafting make things that we are not happy with. Anyone else make cards they want to throw in the bin sometimes?
I have taken a piece of Basic White cardstock measuring the size of a card front – 10.5cm x 14.5cm, and a strip of Masking Paper which I have torn the edge of, and then used to mask off areas for sponging using Blending Brushes. I sponged the lower areas in Pecan Pie ink. Once I had finished the masked areas, I sponged colour lightly onto the top parts, using Summer Splash ink, Azure Afternoon ink and a tiny amount of Fresh Freesia ink.
I then stamped over the sponged colour using stamps from Under The Moon stamp set. The ocean was stamped in Misty Moonlight ink, the clouds in Smokey Slate ink, and the boat in Night of Navy ink.
That’s all from me today, hope you are having a crafty day.
Happy stamping,
Chris
Hi and welcome back.
Today I have a Christmas card to share with you, based on the 12th of the sketches on Page 22 of the Stampin’ Up! Annual Catalogue.
Here is the sketch.
I don’t often start my Christmas cards this early in the year, however I have been offered a wonderful opportunity to have my cards displayed and for sale at a very successful Artisans market, in November, so this year, I need to be creating heaps of Christmas cards and packaging over the next few months.
My card uses a Blackberry Bliss cardbase, such a yummy colour, and one of my favourites in the Stampin’ Up! colour range. The card base is 21cm x 14.5cm, which is then scored at 10.5cm on the long side and folded, so when it’s folded, your card front will be 10.5cm x 14.5cm.
The Basic White panel measures 8.5cm x 14.5cm, and has been run through the Stampin’ Cut and Emboss Machine with the Distressed Tile Embossing Folder, and then I have swiped some Blackberry Bliss ink over the raised areas.
I have cut out the four circles using the Stylish Shapes Dies, in Basic White and Blackberry Bliss cardstock, and some Gold Foil Sheets. The smaller circles have then been embossed with the Changing Leaves Hybrid Embossing Folder. I have also used the Gold Foil Sheets for the die cut leaves from the Changing Leaves Dies, and stamped the leaves on the white circle from the same bundle.
The sentiment comes from the Trucking Along stamp set which is an Online Exclusive which is still available.
Don’t forget the current wonderful promotion with a discount on Designer Series Paper which you can make the most of in my online store here.
Happy stamping
Chris
I’ve been enjoying some quiet time recently while I recover from a nasty flu that took hold a few weeks ago. Sitting and colouring has helped to keep me occupied and creative. So now I’m putting together some cards and notebooks using the coloured images.
This one features the Everyday Details bundle, which you can purchase from my online store: https://www.stampinup.com.au/products/everyday-details-bundle?demoid=4020972
While the stamp set is continuing on into the new Annual catalogue, the dies are not, so they are only available for a short time.
I’ve coloured the image with Stampin’ Blends in Pool Party, Shaded Spruce, Bubble Bath and Daffodil Delight.
Happy stamping,
Chris
Well… any month is a good month to join really. But April is extra good!
Why?
Because if you join in April you can choose some of the brand new pre-order products that are in the new Annual catalogue but not available to customers until May.
That means you know that for a minimum of the next 12 months, those products are going to be current products, making it easier to organise classes or demonstrations if you are inclined to do them.
Of course, being a Stampin’ Up! Demonstrator doesn’t mean you have to run classes. You can just enjoy the benefits and amazing, supportive community.
So if you live anywhere in Australia and feel you would like to join my team, you can do so by clicking this link:
https://www.stampinup.com.au/join?demoid=4020972
Or reach out to me by email to chat about what Stampin’ Up! can offer you, dotdotstamping@gmail.com
I look forward to chatting with you,
Chris
Today I get to share a sneak peek at a gorgeous stamp set which will be available in September, a beautiful Christmas set called Radiant Light.
I love candles at the best of times, the flicker of the flames and the soft light. And I especially love them at Christmas.
I have used the Merry Melody Embossing Folder with Very Vanilla cardstock to create the background. The candle image has been stamped with black Memento ink, then coloured with Stampin’ Blends (alcohol markers). The sentiment is also stamped in black and then fussy cut. I’ve also added some Wink of Stella to the flames but it doesn’t show up well in the photo.
This week is a celebration for me, it is my birthday week. And because I am a musician, this week you will see a lot of music themed projects. I am also celebrating my birthday by giving away gifts to anyone who places an order, whether that is directly with me, or through my online store. And I love giving away gifts!
And there is one other thing that I am hoping to celebrate this week – I am only a few subscribers away from 100 on my YouTube Channel, so I am hoping to hit that milestone this week. I would love it if you would help me out.
The beautiful Radiant Light Stamp Set is only available to demonstrators at the moment – just one of many benefits of being a Stampin’ Up! Demonstrator, but it will be available to you from the 6th September.
Thanks for stopping by.
Happy stamping,
Chris
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Links by TheseAreMyStamps.com
This week’s Colour Creations featured colour is Basic Gray, a colour I often overlook but which is such a versatile colour. And I love it with Fresh Freesia, which I have used for my cards today.
My first card is very simple, with the tree image from Happy Hedgehogs stamp set, stamped in Basic Gray and the butterfly in Fresh Freesia.
I’ve then stepped the card up by colouring the tree with Stampin’ Blends. Yes, you can colour with Stampin’ Blends when the outline image is stamped with a waterbased ink, as long as you don’t blend the outline ink. I don’t use the brush end of the Stampin’ Blends for this, and keep the colouring very simple.
I have used Stampin’ Blends in Fresh Freesia, Daffodil Delight (for the flower centres) and Shaded Spruce. I’ve also added a strip of Masterfully Made Designer Series Paper in Fresh Freesia behind the main panel, and added some silver dots for some bling.
My second card also features the Happy Hedgehogs stamp set, this time the cute little birdie.
The card base is Basic Gray again for this card, and for the background, I have used one of the Artistic Mix Decorative Masks and a Blending Brush and Basic Gray ink, very lightly brushed on to create a subtle background.
The bird is stamped in Basic Gray and coloured in the same way as the second card. The circles were Die cut using the unfortunately retired Stitched Shapes Dies.
We made these cards today in my monthly Card Class, which was a lot of fun.
Next along in our Blog Hop is the talented Tina Gillespie.
If at any time you find a broken link, please go to the blog of our Colour Creations host, Catherine Proctor, who will have a list of all of the participants in the Blog Hop.
Thanks for stopping by.
Happy stamping, and happy hopping,
Chris
If you live in Australia and would like to purchase the items used to make my card today, you can click on the indiviual items listed below to go straight to my online store, or click here.
Alternatively, you can use your device to scan the QR code below. And don’t forget the fantastic July Promotion, spend $90 (before shipping) and receive a voucher to spend next month. I always love this promo, it’s the best!!
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Links by TheseAreMyStamps.com
Today I feel so grateful to be a Stampin’ Up! Demonstrator. Or perhaps I should say today I feel even more grateful than I normally do.
Yesterday I took part in a Demonstrator only event called Creativity Now, where there was a heap of crafting and creativity, so much inspiration and heaps of ideas. Too much to describe here, it was a wonderful day.
We created some cards using a stamp set that is not available yet (but will be in the upcoming Mini Catalogue), called Translucent Florals.
Here is the first card we made, in a lovely combination of Poppy Parade and Garden Green.
The second card stepped up the first card and we added some Berry Burst to the colour combination. It also has a layer of stamped Vellum cardstock layered over the stamped images on the white layer.
And, it wouldn’t be me if I didn’t create something of my own, inspired by those two cards but with my own touches, I can’t help myself. I’ve included some sponging through one of the Foursquare Decorative Mask, and changed the layout a little.
I will freely admit that I wouldn’t have thought to put Poppy Parade and Berry Burst together, but I love the bright and vibrant look.
These three cards were just the first project of three, so I will share my versions of the other projects in later posts.
Happy stamping!
Chris
#SUCreativityNow
Translucent Florals Bundle is not available to purchase yet, but here are some of the other items used to create these projects. You can click on the items below to go to my online store, or click here. Alternatively, you can scan the QR code below with your device.
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And don’t forget the sale on Designer Series Paper which only goes for the next few days.
The Crafty Addicts is back again this month with an open challenge, meaning we want to see any and all of your cards, there’s no restriction as to what you can use, just craft away and share with us.
My card for this month is one that was a bit of an experiment, I’m not too sure that I am happy with the colours, they are for a colour challenge, and I’m not sure I would normally put them together. But it’s always fun to play with colour.
I have used the Foursquare Decorative Masks and some Masking Paper. Each section has been masked, then coloured with ink and blending brushes. Then the masks removed and replaced to create a new area to sponge in a different colour. The circle mask I left there during that process of colouring the background. I’ve then simply used a ruler and black marker to draw the lines in between each colour.
It looks a whole lot more complicated that it really is. Masking is one of my favourite stamping techniques.
And just to add to all the masking going on, I decided to mask the sentiment which comes from the Sending Smiles stamp set, they are two different stamps, I’ve masked half of the strip of cardstock and stamped the word birthday, then masked over the stamped word, and stamped the word hugs.
The colours used are Azure Afternoon, Granny Apple Green, Lemon Lolly, Crushed Curry, and Flirty Flamingo.
Come on over to The Crafty Addicts challenge site where you can see what the rest of the Design Team have made this month. And do share your creations, we love to see what you’ve been crafting.
Happy stamping
Chris
You can click on the images below to go to my online store or click here, or if you prefer to use your device with the QR Code, you can find it below. Don’t forget about the amazing joining offer, if you live in Australia I would love to welcome you to my team, feel free to email or leave a comment if you would like more information.
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Links by TheseAreMyStamps.com
A simple card can have just as much impact as one that we have spent hours creating, and can give the receiver just as much joy.
This particular card took me quite literally five minutes to make from scratch.
Admittedly, Stampin’ Up! does make this very easy. My card features a strip of the beautiful Masterfully Made Designer Series, mounted it onto a piece of Pretty Peacock cardstock, and then onto a Basic White cardbase. So simple.
This is one of the Designer Series Papers that you can get at 15% off in June, so make the most of that.
Hope you are having a crafty day,
Chris
Dot Dot Stamping Designs 