Vintage Venetian Romance

And here we are again - TGI Friday! 

I have some lovely new goodies for you to see today from my recent order from the new Stampin Up annual catalogue .. come and take a closer look ...

Isn't this new paper just divine? It's from the Venetian Romance designer series paper pack, 12 sheets of Euro inspired colours and textures in crisp cantaloupe, island indigo, pistachio oudding, soft suede, tangerine tango & very vanilla. So sumptuous! 

I wanted to take part in the Create with Connie and Mary colour challenge this week where the colours were crisp cantaloupe, soft suede and pistachio pudding and this paper fits just perfectly :) 

 My base card layer is Soft Suede with a little distressed pistachio pudding cardstock and the Venetian Romance paper overlaid and distressed and sponged in Soft Suede around the edges.

The challenge over at Sweet Stampin asks for butterflies and bows, That craft place challenge requires ribbon/lace & the Ribbon Girl challenge requests a bow so I've used the gorgeous crochet trim  which I have pleated for extra effect. The sparkly butterflies & scallop trim fulfil the pink sparkles challenge at Sarah Hurley challenge #82 and the Things with Wings challenge at Totally papercrafts.

Here's a closeup of the lovely paper and little butterfly punched in silver glimmer paper (124005 £4.50 for 2 12"x12" sheets), over-coloured with a  stampin write marker and punched with the elegant butterfly punch (127526 £14.25). 

The sentiment is from Simply Sketched a brand new Hostess set which can be purchased for free when a customer(s) places a Stampin Up order of £150+ - it is a great set to have and I will be featuring more stamps from it later next week. 

The sentiment is stamped & sponged in Soft Suede on whisper white and then punched using the Duo Ticket Builder punch (126883 £15.50) which fits it just right :) The button is from the Neutrals Collection.

Venetian Romance Dsp 130144 £9.95  

Simply Sketched Hostess Reward with £150+ order or £18.95/£14.95 to buy

If you would like to purchase any of the products featured today then please get in touch via email at lisa.barton@hotmail.co.uk and I will be pleased to advise or place your order.

Come back tomorrow for a special treat - it's a team of my fellow Stampin Up Demonstrators known as "the Pinkies" showcasing their latest creations from the new catalogue products from 8am throughout the weekend - should be fun! 

Have a great day! 

Gold embossed Autumn Accents leaf tag

Despite the sunshine and the advent of the school summer holidays next week my thoughts are already turning to Autumn - my favourite time of year! So many new beginnings, new priorities and scents and sounds :) 

Here's today's offering ...

I've used the now retired Top Note die as the base for the tag cut in chocolate chip cardstock and then overlaid it with some Naturals Composition paper - the timber design for added interest and texture. 

The "chicken wire" stamp design is firstly stamped with versamark then embossed with gold embossing powder and set with the heat tool using one of the stamps from the Summer Silhouettes stamp set which I randomly stamped over the Natural Composition paper. 

The leaves were die cut using the Autumn Accents die with the Big Shot and then curled at the edges using the bone folder. The paper used for the leaves is the new Soho Subway and the grunge-y browns, greys & creams were perfect for this project. The leaves were fixed to the card using an antique brad. A piece of chocolate chip stitched ribbon finishes the tag. 

As this tag has more of a masculine feel it is my entry to Totally papercrafts #174 - lets hear it for the boys, Little Claires #34 - male theme, cupcake crafts #249 - not square.


Back tomorrow with some packaging ideas using Stampin Up tag a bag & box :)

Summer Silhouettes using gold embossing powder

Hi there, thanks for popping by today! 

I have created a very simple yet versatile vintage style card today that could be used for weddings, anniversaries, milestone birthdays or just for saying I'm thinking of you :) Come and see ..

My base card is the gorgeous new Baked Brown Sugar (love that name!) and the overlay is very vanilla card (106550 £7.50 for 40 sheets) . The  stamp is from the Summer Silhouettes (w 132082 £21.95, c 126447 £17.95) and I've used versamark to stamp with it then covered in gold stampin embossing powder (109219) and set with the heat tool (129054 £25.95) to give a lovely gold embossed finish. 

To make the embossing appear more aged it isn't perfectly set - gives it more of a distressed, vintage feel which is of course the purpose of my blog!

 

The sentiment is from the fabulous Bring on the Cake stamp set (w 128490 £34.95, c 121958 £27.95) which is full of versatile & useful greetings that can be used for a variety of occasions - my favourite kind of stamp set! 

There are a few wedding/anniversary challenges online this week so am entering into C.R.A.F.T #214 - wedding/anniversary, one stop craft #233 - anything goes, allsorts #214 favourite things (my bring on the cake stamp set!), Fashionista #17 wk 3 - wedding, craft room challenge - vintage stamping.

As always, if there's anything you would like to order that has caught your eye please browse the PDF version of the new annual catalogue here or from the top of the left hand side bar or if you would like a paper copy just drop me a line at lisa.barton@hotmail.co.uk and I can do the rest! 

Have a happy day!

Summer mini albums & cards & crafts July club dates

Welcome back, hope it's still warm & sunny where you are! Thought I would show you what we are making in our July cards & crafts classes here in North Oxfordshire next week ... 

These are little mini albums - with 4 little pages & pockets inside to fit photos, treats, notes - whatever you fancy really! I made these two for a couple of friends whom I went on a spa day with a few weeks ago and they contained some wooden pegs decorated with papers, a little thank you note, a biscuit and a green & blacks mini chocolate bar - needless to say they were well received ;)

Here are the insides ..

  

I used Gingham Garden designer series paper teamed with daffodil delight ribbon and Soho Subway designer series paper teamed with pink pirouette ribbon for them. Stamps included Oh Hello, Notable Alphabet and Bring on the Ccke with Elegant Butterfly and scallop circle punches.

 I'm going to make a few more to give away for summer holiday treats, journalling or popping favourite summer time memory photos in. I have my Stampin Up friend Caroline over at http://craftyhallett.wordpress.com/2013/06/22/first-crafty-hallett-video-tutorial/ to thank for this little cutie project!

If you'd like to join us to make these projects, here are the available dates/locations all in villages in the Banbury area :

• Adderbury - The Bell Inn - Mon 15th July
• Kings Sutton - The Butchers Arms - Tues 16th July
• Bloxham  - Elephant & Castle PH - Weds 17th July
• Hook Norton - The Sun Inn - Tues 23 July

Would be great to meet you!

Back tomorrow with a clean and simple card perfect for a wedding or anniversary :)

Using scallop circle die for a card for the Royal Baby!

Phew what a scorcher this weekend was - and set to continue this week as well! Very proud of fellow Brit Andy Murray who, after a 77 year wait, won the men's tennis finals at Wimbledon yesterday, go Andy!

So looking ahead, this week HRH Prince William & Kate Middleton's royal baby is due .. and here's a little card I made to commemorate the occasion :)

Using the scallop circle die I cut the card out of whisper white cardstock then covered it with polka parade designer series papers in red & blue to symbolise the British flag. 

A piece of crochet trim and a concertina banner carries the sentiment from the Happy Day set stamped in real red ink.

The little crowns are from the Tiny Tags stamp set, now retired and background pieces are punched from the Little Labels punch set. Do you like the little white flower? It's from the new simply pressed clay & mould kit.

Entering this project into Crafty sentiments - red/white/blue, creative inspirations #221 - red, white, blue, papercrafting journey - not square, crafty creations - for a baby, Joanna Sheen - dont be square.

If there is anything you would like from the new annual catalogue please drop me an email at lisa.barton@hotmail.co.uk or leave me a comment and i will be in touch!

See you again tomorrow with a fab summer holidays project :) 

Celebration Cupcakes

It's going to be another exciting day today for us English sports wise- celebrating the Lions Rugby Victory yesterday, Andy Murray in the Wimbledon Tennis Finals and Lewis Hamilton in great position in the German Grand Prix.

To add to the excitement my daughter #3's little friend Olivia is celebrating her 4th birthday! And here's our offering ...

I've used this card to showcase all the new Stampin Up In Colours - Strawberry Slush, Crisp Cantalupe, Pistachio Pudding, Coastal Cabana and Baked Brown Sugar - all of which can be purchased as inks, stampin write markers, cardstock, ribbon & refill inks. Such wonderful summer colours :)

I used strawberry slush as my base card and then cut a tag shape (from the now sadly retired but I can't let go of it Two Tags die ;)) in coastal cabana which has wonderful faux stitching around the edges. The scallop trim border punch (118402 £14.25) was used to shape the the pistachio pudding card. 

The cupcake was stamped from the Create a Cupcake stamp set (w 128520 £20.95, c 121982 £16.95) and then punched with the Cupcake Builder punch (121807 £15.50) saving lots of time on fussy cutting! The cake case & cherry was stamped in Strawberry Slush and the cake top in Baked Brown Sugar with the bow in Coastal Cabana.

I used Notable Alphabet (w 132047 £41.95, c 126357 £33.95) for Olivia's name along with the heart and flower stamps also in the Create a cupcake set. 

The tag is tied with some crochet lace trim (118481 £6.25 for 4.6m) and the last of my In colour Pool Party designer brads from 2011-2012 stash.

The number 4 is cut from some Soho Subway papers featured yesterday in my Starburst technique card.

And here's the gift ...

I also stamped inside the card and on the envelope to match - my daughter made a bit of a spelling mistake with the name but it simply adds to the charm I think!

The flowers on the gift wrap were some left over from this card - I keep everything for "just in case"! The whole ensemble was then tied with Wisteria Wonder bakers twine and off we go!

Popping into Cute daisy may - let's get girly challenge, Creative craft challenges #13 - faux stitching, Charisma cards #26 - lace, crafts for eternity #131 - faux stitching, Ladybug Crafts - age birthday.

See you again tomorrow with another patriotic creation ready for the expected & imminent birth of our Royal baby later this week :)

Soho Subway Sunburst technique

Good day to you! We have a wonderful weekend of hot, hot, hot weather predicted - seems like Summer is now in full swing! Seeing the sun again has inspired today's card - aptly named the sunburst technique ;) ...

This technique is really easy but very effective - you simply cut strips of paper/card on a diagonal and then layer them into a semi circle cutting off any overhanging ends :)

I've chosen the new on trend grunge-y Soho Subway and Epic Day designer series papers as my sunburst design - I think the colours blend really well together (of course coordinating colours are Stampin Up's USP so I expect nothing less!)  The background card stock is the new Baked Brown sugar (what a fab name!).

Here's a closeup of the papers - the flower was made with the blossom punch which has become my go-to punch of choice for any flower shape - 2 punched pieces of paper pushed into the paper piercing mat to shape them and finish with a 1" circle punch piece of paper in the centre - couldn't find any antique brads which would have gone perfectly - cue new Stampin Up order! The ribbon is Daffodil Delight taffeta - so bright and cheery :)

Soho Subway designer series paper 130140 £9.95

Epic Day This & That designer series papers 130814 £9.95

Blossom punch 125603 £15.50

There are quite a few summer challenges at the moment so this card is dropping in at crafty cardmakers - #95 holiday, Incy Wincy designs - summer loving, Jellypark - celebrate summer.

Hope you have a lovely sunny day wherever you are! See you tomorrow :)