JAI #167: JUST ADD .... FABRIC

All of the Just Add Ink team are back on deck, after having our last challenge carry over for an extra week.  Most of us attended Stampin' Up!'s Convention in Brisbane, and had a fantastic time.  Now it's back to regular programming!

The challenge at Just Add Ink this week, set by Tina, is to Just Add .... Fabric to your papercraft project.  The only fabric I have is a packet of Stampin' Up!'s Summer Smooches Designer Fabric, which co-ordinates beautifully with the Bright Blossoms stamp set - so, my path was set!

Here's the card I made:

...... and a little close-up, so you can see the fabric more clearly:

Stamps: Bright Blossoms, Itty Bitty Banners

Card: Tempting Turquoise, Whisper White, Real Red and Basic Black

Ink: Versamark inkpad, Tempting Turquoise and Real Red markers, Basic Black craft ink

Other: Summer Smooches Designer Fabric, Peek-a-Boo Trio die (not SU!), Fancy Fan embossing folder, 1" and 1 1/4" Circle punches, Bitty Banners framelits, Dotted Scallop Ribbon border punch, clear stampin' emboss powder, stampin' dimensionals, paper-piercing tool and Stampin' Pierce mat, Neturals brads

 

 

Be sure to check out the rest of the Design Team samples - there's some awesome inspiration to be had!  We hope you'll dig out some fabric, and have a play too.

 

 

 



STAMPIN' UP! CONVENTION - BRISBANE 2013 - IN A NUTSHELL

I am starting to recover from 5 fun-filled days in Brisbane, that was Convention for this year.  Every year Stampin' Up! puts on a fantastic event, but this year they surpassed all expectations - it was amazing!  Being a Convention attendee in Stampin' Up!'s 25th anniversary year meant being showered with gifts, and fun times ... I didn't want it to end!  Convention itself was spread over 3 days, but I spent a little extra time in Brisbane with some of the other members of the Just Add Ink Design Team.  Boy, did we laugh.  A lot!

Apart from all the freebies, THE highlight of Convention is the people.  The Stampin' Up! staff, from Australia and New Zealand, and from the Home Office in Utah, put so much time, effort and love into making Convention a super-special time.  Saying goodbye to them at the end was like farewelling much-loved family members.  I love Convention for re-connecting with friends from around Australia and New Zealand .... and I have a few photo collages to share with you.  I normally attend Convention with members of my wider Stampin' Up! team, but this year stayed with the Just Add Ink girls.  I did manage lots of "hellos" and hugs with my other friends, but also managed to not get any photos with them (which wasn't intentional!).


In the top left corner are Nikki and Kim ... top right are Narelle and me.
The bottom photo is of Ruthy, Mae and Jodene.

Next up are pics of the gorgeous "roomie gifts" I received from a few of the girls I shared an apartment with.  They had to settle for my presence, as my gift to them!

More "people" shots.  The top photo is of all of the Just Add Ink team members who were at Convention, along with the ever-gracious, and extremely patient, Shelli and Sterling Gardner.  Shelli is the CEO and co-founder of Stampin' Up!, and Sterling is her "sweetheart", who attends Convention when he is able to.  It was great to have them both in Brisbane.

Bottom left is me, with Paula.  Bottom right I'm in between Donna Griffiths, and Bonnie Thurber, from the US Home Office.  Love all these women!!

.... and, to finish up, a few "general" shots.  The top photo is of Donna Griffith on stage, with the 25th anniversary backdrop (so cute).  Bottom left is the obligatory lunch shot!  SU! supplied lunch on two of the three days; the lunch boxes are always a treat.  Bottom right is a photo of the dessert buffet on offer, on awards night.

All in all, it was a wonderful three days.  I am happy to be home with my boys, but must admit I'm already daydreaming about Convention 2014!

STAMPIN' UP! CONVENTION SWAP

I've scheduled this post to publish while I am at Stampin' Up!'s Convention in Brisbane.  It's three days of full-on fun, hype and information .... and, best of all, catching up with friends from all around Australia and New Zealand.

I was disinclined to make swaps this year, as I have been feeling even more time-poor (and less organized) than I usually do .... and felt a bit overwhelmed by the fact that there will be close to 700 people attending Convention!!  However, I knew I'd regret it if I didn't take part in the process of swapping with other demonstrators, so I managed to make 50 swaps before leaving Melbourne.  I've gone with a simple (easily replicated) design, using a colour combo suggested by Stampin' Up!s Color Coach - and with a masculine theme, as I know a lot of people like ideas for male cards (and they're my favourite kind to make).  Here's my swap for this year:

 

Stamps: Blue Ribbon, Bring On The Cake, Netting, Candle Crazy Builder Wheel

Card: Tangerine Tango, Early Espresso, Whisper White, Marina Mist

DSP: Tangerine Tango Patterns Designer Series Paper

Ink: Tangerine Tango, Early Espresso, Marina Mist stampin' pads

Other: Tasteful Trim XL Bigz die, 1 3/8" Circle punch, 2 3/8" Scallop Circle punch, Bitty Banners framelits, sponge daubers

 

 

 

STAMPIN' UP! STIPPLED BLOSSOMS - CLASS CARDS PART 2

Welcome back to the second instalment in my two-part "series" of Stippled Blossoms cards, showing what we made in classes this month.

This card is my personal favourite, of all four we made - and it was a hit with my class attendees.  Stippled Blossoms works so well with a range of colours; and in neutrals, it's stunning.  Even though I designed this card as a sympathy card, I think it would work just as well as a wedding or engagement card, or even a 'get well' or 'thinking of you' card.

Stamps: Stippled Blossoms, Itty Bitties, Petite Pairs

Card: Very Vanilla, Crumb Cake

Ink: Crumb Cake and Soft Suede stampin' pads

Other: Vintage Wallpaper embossing folder, 1 3/8" Circle punch, Itty Bitty Shapes circle punch, Designer Builder Brads, Stamp-a-ma-jig, 7/8" Cotton Ribbon

Lastly, we made a card in blues, using two retiring colours - Not Quite Navy, and Baja Breeze.

 

Stamps: Stippled Blossoms, Blooming With Kindness

Card: Not Quite Navy, Whisper White, Baja Breeze

Ink: Not Quite Navy, Baja Breeze and Old Olive stampin' pads

Other: Stamp-a-ma-jig, Apothecary Accents framelits, Essentials Paper-Piercing pack, Stampin' Pierce Mat and Paper-Piercing tool, Lacy Brocade embossing folder, Silver Mini Brads, sponge dauber, Whisper White 1/4" stitched grosgrain ribbon, glue dots, stampin' dimensionals

 

 

 

STAMPIN' UP! STIPPLED BLOSSOMS - CLASS CARDS PART 1

This month I've run a couple of classes focussing on the beautiful Stippled Blossoms stamp set.  This two-step stamp set provides a real "wow" result, when you stamp the overlay image over the solid base image.

I am sharing with you today the first two cards we made in class.

The first card was inspired by the work of a German SU! demonstrator, Nadine - here is her card.  I love the tiny flags created with the Bitty Banners framelits.  My chosen colour scheme for this card is River Rock and Bravo Burgundy - two of the colours that will retire from Stampin' Up!'s range at the beginning of July.

 

 

Stamps: Stippled Blossoms, Bring on the Cake

Card: Very Vanilla River Rock, Bravo Burgundy

Ink: River Rock and Bravo Burgundy stampin' pads

Other: Bitty Banners Framelits, Scallop Edge border punch, Stamp-a-ma-jig, sponge dauber

 

 

 

 

 

The next card we made was using the colour combo of Summer Starfruit and Basic Gray.  This card has a much less 'formal' look about it, and uses the smaller flower from the set.

 

 

 

 

Stamps: Stippled Blossoms, Perfect Punches

Card: Basic Gray, Whisper White, Silver Glimmer Paper

DSP: Summer Starfruit Patterns Designer Series Paper

Ink: Summer Starfruit and Basic Gray stampin' pads, Versamark inkpad

Other: Pewter embossing powder, XL Oval punch, Bitty Butterfly and Elegant Butterfly punches, Borders Scoring Plate and Simply Scored tool, Neutrals brad, sponge daubers, Stamp-a-ma-jig, stampin' dimensionals

 

 

Tomorrow I'll post the other two cards we made in the Stippled Blossoms classes.  I hope I inspire you to get out this gorgeous stamp set (and buy it, if you don't own it already!), and have a play.

 

 

 



JAI #166 : A SHAVING FOAM, EASY EVENTS, COLOUR CHALLENGE!

This week at Just Add Ink, Delys has come up with an awesome colour combo for us to use on our cards/scrapbook pages:

I was tempted to make a masculine card with these colours, but am in need of "happy anniversary" cards at the moment, so decided to make a rather rustic-looking anniversary card.

Using the shaving foam technique, that I've latched on to a bit of late, I created a background panel with Lucky Limeade, Night of Navy (as I don't have Midnight Muse - must rectify that!) and Crumb Cake re-inkers. 

Stamps: Easy Events, Teeny Tiny Sentiments

Card: Crumb Cake, Lucky Limeade, Midnight Muse, Whisper White

DSP: Print Poetry Designer Series Paper stack

Ink: Midnight Muse stampin' pad, Crumb Cake stampin' pad, marker and re-inker, Lucky Limeade stampin' pad, marker and re-inker, Night of Navy re-inker

Other: 2 1/2" Circle punch, Perfect Pennants Bigz die, Midnight Muse stitched satin ribbon, Crumb Cake taffeta ribbon, Lucky Limeade ruffled ribbon, sponge daubers, Stamp-a-ma-jig, glue dots, shaving foam

 

 

 

The rest of the Design Team at Just Add Ink have come up with some great creations for this colour challenge.  We'd love to have you play along with us!

 

 



FUSION #6: STAMPIN' UP!'S MORNING CUP

The card I have to share with you today was inspired by both the sketch and photo inspiration at Fusion Card Challenge:

I just love all those cute, bright, tea cups on a grey background - so pulled out my Morning Cup stamp set, embossed the stacked cups a few times with pewter embossing powder, and coloured them with markers in similar happy colours.

 

Stamps: Morning Cup, Friendly Phrases

Card: Basic Gray, Whisper White, Regal Rose, Melon Mambo

DSP: Regal Rose Patterns Designer Series Paper

Ink: Versamark inkpad, Melon Mambo stampin' pad and marker, Regal Rose marker, Pumpkin Pie marker, Daffodil Delight marker

Other: Pewter embossing powder, Itty Bitty Shapes punch, Boho Blossoms punch, 1 3/4" Circle punch, Paper daisies, Basic Pearls, Finishing Touches edgelits, flag die (not SU!), sponge daubers, glue dots

STB #16: STAMPIN' UP!'S THE OPEN SEA

Thankfully, the challenges at Seize the Birthday have gone to a two-week format, rather than weekly ... for the past week and a half, I've been meaning to play along, and finally have some time free.  I'm enjoying my Mother's Day treat, of time in my craft room!

During the week I had some friends over for a stamping day, and I showed them how to make gorgeous patterns on card, using the shaving foam technique.  Judy chose a colour combo of Night of Navy, Pool Party and Crumb cake.  The end result looked quite 'nautical' to me; it lent itself perfectly to being used on a card with The Open Sea stamp set (a GREAT 'guy' set).

Here's the sketch, to be used to make a birthday card:

 

 

 

Because of the swirly detail on my 'shaving foam' panel, I've left my card rather un-embellished; it was difficult to not add brads or buttons, but I think it works, for a male card!

 

 

Stamps: The Open Sea, Perfectly Penned

Card: Crumb Cake, Night of Navy, Whisper White, Pool Party Core'dinations

Ink: Crumb Cake stampin' pad and re-inker, Night of Navy stampin' pad and re-inker, Pool Party re-inker

Other: 2 1/2" Circle punch, sponge daubers, Argyle embossing folder, Crumb Cake tulle (retired), Blue denim ribbon, flag die (not SU!), shaving foam

 



JAI #165 : JUST ADD WOODGRAIN

This week at Just Add Ink, we're challenging you to add WOODGRAIN to your card, or papercraft project.  Maybe you have a stamp, some patterned paper, or an embossing folder that fits the bill.  We'd love to see what you come up with!

I've used my Woodgrain background stamp, from Stampin' Up!, and have gone to town with Gumball Green!   I did stamp the Woodgrain on the patterned paper, but it didn't show up (you might just have to take my word for that one).

Stamps: Woodgrain, Aviary, That's the Ticket

Card: Gumball Green, Whisper White, Basic Black

DSP: Print Poetry Designer Series Paper stack

Ink: Gumball Green stampin' pad, Jet Black Staz-On inkpad

Other: 2 1/2" Circle punch, Ticket Duo punch, Neutrals brads, Gumball Green stitched satin ribbon, Stamp-a-ma-jig, In Color Dahlia, Stampin' Distress tool, sponge dauber, glue dots

 

 

I must give credit to my friend Leanne, for suggesting I use a black sentiment ticket in the centre - doesn't it look fabulous?  I just love how it stands out.

 

 

Make sure you check out the rest of the samples created by the Design Team; there are some VERY cool ideas to inspire you!

 

 



DD #51 : A BABY CARD

When I saw this week's Dynamic Duos colour combo, I immediately decided to make a baby card.

 

I gathered up a variety of Designer Series Papers in Daffodil Delight and Baja Breeze, and punched a dozen 1 1/4" squares.  After adhering them to a piece of cardstock, I ran it through my Big Shot using Stampin' Up!'s Top Note die.  I do love me a "quilted" Top Note! 

 

Here's the end result, once I'd added a few embellishments and details:

 

 

 

Stamps: A Fitting Occasion, Beyond Plaid

Card: Baja Breeze, Whisper White

DSP: Sunshine & Sprinkles, Polka Dot Parade, Twitterpated, Patio Party, Floral District and Daffodil Delight Patterns Designer Series Papers

Ink: Baja Breeze and Daffodil Delight stampin' pads, White gel pen

Other: Top Note Bigz die, Simply Scored with Metric Plate and Borders Scoring Plate, Hearts A Flutter framelits, Square Lattice embossing folder, 1 1/4" square punch, Curly Label punch, 1" Circle punch, sponge daubers, Twitterpated buttons (retired), Essentials Paper Piercing Pack with Stampin' Pierce Mat and Paper-Piercing Tool, Baja Breeze seam binding, glue dots, Stamp-A-Ma-Jig

 

 



JAI #164: STAMPIN' UP! BLUE RIBBON BIRTHDAY

The challenge at Just Add Ink this week, courtesy of Mae (our sketch queen!), is to make a papercraft project based on this sketch:

I pulled out my trusty Color Coach from Stampin' Up!, and went with the suggested colour combo of Marina Mist, Cajun Craze and Crumb Cake.  I've just bought the Blue Ribbon stamp set, and decided these colours would work really well with it ..... here's what I came up with:

Stamps: Blue Ribbon, Bring on the Cake

Card: Marina Mist, Whisper White, Cajun Craze, Crumb Cake

DSP: Polka Dot Parade Designer Series Paper

Ink: Marina Mist stampin' pad and marker, Cajun Craze and Crumb Cake stampin' pads, Whisper White craft stampin' pad

Other: 2 3/8" Scallop Circle punch, Bitty Banners framelits, 1 3/8" Circle punch, Brights Glimmer brads, Essentials Paper Piercing Kit, Stampin' Pierce Mat and Paper-Piercing tool, 1 1/4" Square punch, sponge dauber, stampin' dimensionals

 

 

 

The rest of the Design Team have come up with some beautiful creations using this sketch - make sure you check them out!  We hope you will join in the fun at Just Add Ink this week.