12 Kits of Occasions~Guest Designer: A New Year of Birthdays

Hello,

A while back, my wonderful friend, Tracey McNeely, asked if I'd like to be one of her guest designers for 12 Kits of Occasions January 2021: A New Year of Birthdays and, of course, I responded with a resounding YES! Such an honour to be participating with this wonderful group of friends.

First, let's take a look at the amazing array of birthday-themed goodies Tracey shared with all of us:

An assortment of papers, pinwheels, baked treats, Kobi bearing gifts, a mug filled with crafting goodies, a BIG birthday wishes die cut, birthday sentiments, balloons...a smorgasbord of 'special day' delights! 

I'm sharing four cards that feature several of my picks-and-chooses from the collection:

Tracey's kit has given me a great start on my 2021 birthday stash AND 

I still have plenty of goodies yet to use! 

Thank you, yet again, Tracey, for inviting me to play cards with you and the 12 Kits of Occasions gals!

Please head over to the  12 Kit of Occasions blog to see the kit's contents, as well as the team and other guests' creations; you'll be dazzled!

Thank you for dropping by!

Just Us Girls Challenge #569~Wild Card: Masking...XOXO

Hello,

Welcome to Just Us Girls Challenge #569 where Lisa has selected Masking as her selection for Wild Card Week. 

A huge *thank you* to Carol McFarland and Melanie Hungerford for sharing their amazing creativity and beautiful cards over the past five weeks; you've been wonderfully inspiring!  Your masking finales are delightful, as are those by my teammates. To those visiting my blog: if you have a chance to drop in and leaving a comment on our guests and the JUGS designers' sites, that would be greatly appreciated.

Masking! Sighhh....not my strong suite, based on the 926 messed up versions that fed my recycle bin. Finally, I decided to go with a most basic technique which meant - *true confession* - using a masking stencil to ink a section of my card base. Over the background, I used a hearts stencil to add a bit of interest. Die cut hearts and an XOXO = done!  I'm happy with the way this turned out, even if it's simply simple! 

That's it from me; looking forward to seeing your masking marvels in the gallery!

Thank you for dropping by!

Inkspirational Challenge #231~Photo Inspiration...Conquer the World in Beautiful Shoes

Hello,

Welcome to Inkspirational Challenge #231, where we're inviting you to draw inspiration from this stylish photo:

Pretty obvious what caught my eye: shoes, shoes and shoes! A background of assorted shoes (Stampendous) sets the stage for my star of the show: the teal high-heeled die-cut, covered with glossy accents pump! Once upon a time I used to wear shoes like this! Now, comfy in my slip-on Skechers!  The sentiment, from Picket Fence, reads "Conquer the World in Beautiful Shoes" (makes sense to me *grin*); the framing is glitter cardstock:

And, since I had the supplies out, a second card happened...

Please check out how my teammates interpreted the photo, then play along with us!

Marina, Shauna, Pia, Marlena, Lindsey

Thank you for dropping by!

Just Us Girls Challenge #568~Photo Week...When It's Dark, Look for Stars (PFS Constellation)

Hello,

Welcome to Just Us Girls Challenge #568, where I've selected this lovely atmospheric photo for this week's inspiration. A plethora of interpretations, be it the buildings + sky; the glow of reflected light; the stars, the colours..and so much more. One focal spark or several: whatever you choose will be fabulous1

Here's an expanded view:

Carol McFarland and Melanie Hungerford  join us once again as January guest designers. Their cards, as well as those of my teammates, are ever so creative! If you have a chance to visit their blogs and leave some love, I know that will be greatly appreciated.

I've taken this complex composition and distilled it down to three things that caught my eye: the starry night sky, the silver decor and the gold lights of the building in the background and the reflections on the street. In combining these, I ended up with this rather clean, simple encouragement card:

That's it from me; looking forward to seeing how the photo inspires you!

Thank you for dropping by!

You're Snow Much Fun Mini Tobogganing Ellie Slider Cards~Your Next Stamps Challenge #155~New Beginnings

Popping in this sunny Thursday with a card for Your Next Stamp Challenge #155: New Beginnings

Two 'new' beginnings are on my card: a first time using YNS mini stamps/dies - in this case, the abundantly adorable Tobogganing Ellie - and a first EVER making of a slider card!  Combine the two and you get one sweet Ellie, twisting, turning and tumbling her way down a snowy slope! Oh my stars...I had such fun making this wee scene and even MORE fun tipping the card back and forth to watch her sledding antics! 

Here's a basic photo of the card...

and here she is...tobogganing down the hill! 

In fact, Ellie + the slider was so much fun, I made another (and a few more coloured Ellies are ready to be assembled into sliders soon):

Looking forward to playing with more 'new' minis and pairing them with sliders whenever I can! 

Also sharing at:

The Paper Players Challenge #524~CAS/Snow

Thank you for dropping by!

The Color Hues Challenge #10~Navy and Cream...Marble Love

Hello,

WOW...another two weeks have whooshed by and here we are: mid-January. I was hoping for a slower pace in the passage of time; I have so much I want to do...cross-stitch, make cards, read, make cards, learn to crochet (I tried a couple times over the past week and oh dear! Loads of practice required), make cards...*grin*. Speaking of cards...

Welcome to The Color Hues Challenge #10, where our lovely Nancy invites us to play with hues of Navy and Cream for the next couple of weeks. A 'classy' combination...

As much as I'd like to take credit for the gorgeous hues-of-navy and cream/gold paper on my panel, I can't! Nope...these stunning papers come from P13's Marble patterned paper collection, which you can see here (purchased from my 'local-ish' retailer). So. Much. Gorgeous!  And yes, I hoard these papers, bringing them out only for very special occasions...and what's more special than *this* challenge!

Pinkfresh Studio's Ornate Banners created the panel design; The Stamp Market's Love dies, the sentiment. I used the same paper for the letters as for the under panel, then layered them over glitter mirror cardstock for a bit more pizzazz.  In real life, this is WOW! All credit goes to the products more so than any talent on my part. I just played along. No stamping, no inking, no mess! Love it!

Please visit the rest of the team; they've created quite the array of dazzling delights with Navy & Cream:

Nancy

Hannelie

Cindy

Julie

Sheri

Kristie

Lindsey

Karen

The challenge is open until 9:00 AM (EST) on January 29th.

 The winners will be posted an hour before our next challenge goes live.

The overall winner will have the opportunity to be a 

future Guest Designer!

Thank you for dropping by!

Uniko January 2021 Blog Hop~Hello Lovely

Hello,

Welcome to the Uniko January 2021 Non-Release Brand Ambassador Blog Hop & GIVEAWAY! This month, Bev has selected Hello Lovely as the featured stamp deserving of some extra showcasing and love. A wonderful choice, especially with Valentine's Day coming quickly.

I decided to try an elegant approach to showcase this stamp, with a combination of gold embossing, gold shimmer + black cardstock and some pretty pearls.  No sentiment on the front, leaving it open as whatever occasion seems fit. Wedding, anniversary, birthday...lots of possibilities.

As usual we have our GIVEAWAY, so be sure to comment along the hop for your chance to win the Hello Lovely Clear Stamp Set.  You can find the list of Brand Ambassadors, with their lovely cards, here. 

Thank you for dropping by!

Just Us Girls Challenge #567~Light, Medium and Dark Blue (Colour Week)...Hey, Hi, Hello

Hello,

Welcome to Just Us Girls Challenge #567, where our lovely Maria has selected 3 shades of blue as this week's colour inspiration.

Carol McFarland and Melanie Hungerford  join us once again as January guest designers. Their cards, as well as those of my teammates, are ever so creative! If you have a chance to visit their blogs and leave some love, I know that will be greatly appreciated.

My no-stamps/no ink card uses a variety of word/heart dies from Concord & 9th's Hey There set, with the blue cardstock panels nestled into Trinity Stamps Mini Modern Slimline. Simple and fun!

That's it from me; looking forward to seeing your three shades of blue sensations in the gallery!

Thank you for dropping by!

STAMPlorations Reminder Post - Jan. 2021 CAS Card Challenge: Quick Card Front Thanks

Hello,

Welcome to my reminder post for STAMPlorations January 2021 CAS Challenge, where Anything CAS Goes, with an optional colour twist of red, pink and orange.

 

In my previous post for this challenge, I created a slimline card using one of Shery's new product lines: Quick Card Kits.  This time, I reached for a panel from her Quick Card Kit #2 - A2 Card Fronts. The images on these papers are gorgeous and making cards is truly a breeze. Here, I added a shimmery Thanks  and that was it! An easy, pretty card...with absolutely no stamping required! 

That's it from me; time for you to play along.

• You can find Challenge details here. PLEASE READ as they've been updated.
• If you decide to purchase some of the products I - or other designers have used - head over to the STAMPlorations Online Store (always great deals to be had!)
• To receive an additional 20% off your purchases, I invite you to use my discount code: STAMPGIRLCAROL.

Thank you for dropping by!

Uniko Jan-Feb Challenge #63~Anything Goes (optional twist Use A Stencil)...Snowflake Winter Birthday

Hello,

Welcome to Uniko Jan.-Feb Challenge #63, where the theme is Anything Goes, with the optional twist of using a stencil/s.

My card design (mini slimline/Photplay #6) was inspired by the theme here, as well as the current challenge at Seize the Birthday Challenge #205, where the 'toppings' prompt is Snowy Birthday. I reached for the oh-so-pretty Let It Snow stencil and, because I wanted a change from winter colours, I went for rainbow. A combination of stamps from Stunning Snowflakes and Birthday Sentiments make up the sentiment. 

That's it from me! Be sure to head over to the main blog to see the delights created by Bev and the 'challenge-launch' ambassadors.  As always, Bev is offering Prizes! 

THE PRIZES

• Main Winner Chosen By the DT - £15 eGift Certificate
• Random Twist Winner - £5 eGift Certificate
• Random Uniko Stamps Winner - £5 eGift Certificate
• Top 3 Chosen By DT - 150 Loyalty Reward Points

There is plenty of time to join and play along with this challenge. 

The deadline for submission is midnight (GMT) on Friday 19th February 2021.

Also sharing at:

Seize the Birthday Challenge #205 ~ Snowy Background

Thank you for dropping by!

Perfectly CAS January 2021 Challenge~Use a Stencil...Sending Hugs Tulips

Hello,

After a six month break to refresh and rejuvenate, the Perfectly CAS design team is back!  Welcome to our January 2021 Challenge #11, where we're inviting you to use STENCILS on 1/3 or less of your cards.

My card was super simple to make, thanks to the adorable retro stencil tulip from Concord & 9th. I think they're sweet as companions to a sending hugs sentiment.

Please be sure to pop by my teammates' blogs, leave them some love, then bring your Perfectly CAS Stencil creations to the gallery.

• A friendly reminder: For this challenge, we're asking you to use one-third (aka: the rule of thirds) or less on your card designs, leaving plenty of scrumptious white space (two-thirds of your panel) to draw our eyes to to your focal image. Kylie has included an easy-to-follow explanation on the challenge blog here.

Please: stay safe and healthy!

Thank you for dropping by!

Inkspirational Challenge #230~Mask (Word Prompt)....You're Super Super Heroes

Hello,

Welcome to our first Inkspirational Challenge of 2021, where we're inviting you to use "mask" in some fashion on your cards/projects. Plenty of ways to go with this prompt, as my talented teammates have shown.

I am pa-thet-ic when it comes to 'traditional' masking for any number of reasons so, because the word is *mask*, I went with what works for me: my masked superheroes! These cuties are from Taylored Expressions; the panel die from Sunny Studios; the paper from Paper Rose. Aside from the colouring, this was a quick make!

Please check out how my teammates interpreted *mask*, then play along with us!

Marina, Shauna, Pia, Marlena, Lindsey

See you in the gallery!

Thank you for dropping by!

Just Us Girls Challenge #566~Use a Stencil (Trend Week)...Faceted Stencil Hugs

Hello,

Welcome to Just Us Girls Challenge #566, where our lovely hostess, Ina, is inviting us to use stencils on our cards/projects. Given their rising popularity, I'm sure you have plenty in your collection to share with us! 

Our two guest designers -  Melanie Hungerford and Carol McFarland - join us again. They've created sensational stencil cards, as have my teammates. If you have a chance, do visit the various blogs and enjoy the delights you find. We're also thrilled to welcome Cecile back to the design team!

Concord & 9th's Faceted Turnabout stencils sure offer a bang for your buck: two faceted stencils and a handful of words to mix-and-match. Here, I've used the 'flower-ish' stencil, pairing it with a Hugs die from The Stamp Market and a pearl for a bit of bling. Super simple...seriously!

That's it from me; looking forward to seeing your stencil sensations in the gallery!

Thank you for dropping by!

HLS January 2020 Anything Goes with Dies Challenge...Gift Bag + Tags Ensemble

Hello,

I'm back to welcome you to our first 2021 Happy Little Stampers' Anything Goes with Dies Challenge. Super easy to play along!

Along with the joy I get from making cards, so too do I love making little ' package somethings': tags, treat envelopes, shopping bags, wee purses.  Today, I'm sharing a trio of such projects that involve zero stamping! Dies and patterned paper did all the work!

First, a little shopping bag...

followed by a gift card tag...

and a two-piece tag.  

Here's the ensemble! So happy to have found a stash of patterned papers hiding in the basement! They did all the work!

That's it from me! Check out what my talented teammates have created, then bring out your dies and join us in the gallery!

Thank you for dropping by!