JUST ADD INK #54 .... "LOVE DEFINED" VALENTINE

Here's the colour challenge over at Just Add Ink this week:

LOVE what the girls come up with, week in, week out.  Now, I know this combination has been touted as a "girly girl" one, but I decided it'd be perfect for a Valentine's card for hubby.  He's a bit of a no-nonsense, non-card-loving (sacrilege, I know), unsentimental guy.  He'd prefer not to get a Valentine's Day card, since we really don't recognise Valentine's Day.  But, hey, it's another excuse for me to create, so I'm running with it!

I've just bought some of Stampin' Up!'s cute little Note Cards, in Whisper White (thanks Bron Eastley for MAKING me get these!!).  They are a gorgeous size - just shy of 9cm x 13cm.  They come with envelopes, and cost only $9.50 for 20.  Contact me if you don't have a Stampin' Up! demonstrator, and would like to order some!

Here is the un-girly card I've made for this week's challenge:

Stamps: Love Defined, Itty Bitty Bits

Card: Whisper White, Note Card, Early Espresso, Soft Suede, Regal Rose textured

Ink: Soft Suede stampin' pad, Early Espresso marker, Rose Red stampin' pad and marker, Regal Rose marker

Other: Itty Bitty Shapes punch (circle), aquapainter, Linen Thread, 1 3/8" square punch, sponge dauber, Nestabilities, edge distressing tool 

COLOUR Q CHALLENGE #69

Today I'm playing along for the first time in a Colour Q Challenge.  I have made a little 10cm x 10cm square card .... such a cute size, that I was introduced to by my friend Chris.   Boy have I packed a lot onto this little area, though -  I ended up using 5 stamp sets and 4 punches!

Here are the gorgeous colours that Arielle has chosen to be used on a papercraft project:

I think these colours together look quite rustic, and folksy (is that a word?).  LOVE them!

Here's my little creation:

Stamps: Love Defined, Itty Bitty Bits, Tiny Tags, Teeny Tiny Sentiments, Confetti

Card: Crumb Cake, Rich Razzleberry, Whisper White, Cajun Craze, Peach Parfait

Ink: Crumb Cake, Rich Razzleberry, Cajun Craze and Peach Parfait stampin' pads and markers

Other: Peach Parfait poly-stitched ribbon, Itty Bitty Shapes Punch, Owl Punch XL, Word Window Punch, Medium Jewelry Tag Punch, aquapainter, Kraft corduroy button, sponge dauber, ruler, bone scorer, mini glue dot, Tombow multi glue

I know that's rather a big button for such a little card, but I was determined to use it ... I received an assortment of Kraft Corduroy Buttons (not available in Australia) for Christmas, from a dear friend, and I just love them.  I like the texture it adds, in conjunction with the ribbon.


HAPPY AUSTRALIA DAY!!

BLOG HOP - STAMPIN' UP! SUMMER MINI

Yippee - I've stamped!  After a rather long hiatus, I've spent a little time in my craft room the past few days.  I returned from holidays with a chest infection and vertigo, so my creativity hasn't exactly come flooding back, but I do have a few cards to share with you!

Today I'm taking part in a blog hop, with 8 friends who are also Stampin' Up! demonstrators.  In our projects, we've used products from Stampin' Up!'s Summer Mini catalogue.  You can view the catalogue online by clicking on the cover in the right-hand sidebar of my blog.  There are lots of YUMMY things in this Mini; they are available only until the end of March.

You may have arrived here after seeing what the incredibly creative Amy Buchanan has made ... but, if not, no problem.  Just follow the links at the end of each blog post in today's "hop", and you'll get round all 9 blogs, and hopefully get lots of great ideas for using the new products.

The first card I have to show you is made with the gorgeous Aviary stamp set.  This is one that I'd coveted since seeing it on US blogs well before it arrived in Australia, so there was no question about me buying the stamps!  I've also used the adorable Itty Bitty Bits flower stamp, and co-ordinating Itty Bitty Shapes punch, to create some sweet embellishments.  The crochet trim's new too.  Take a look:

Stamps: Aviary, Itty Bitty Bits, Sincere Salutations, Daisy Dash jumbo stampin' around wheel

Card: Riding Hood Red, Basic Black, Very Vanilla

DSP: Love Letter and Newsprint Designer Series Papers

Ink: Riding Hood Red, Basic Black and Crumb Cake stampin' pads

Other: Itty Bitty Shapes punch, 1 1/4" square punch, scallop square punch, Basic Pearls, sponge dauber, Stamp-a-ma-jig, Victoria 5/8" crochet trim, mini glue dots

Next up is a simple, but I think rather sweet (can I say that about my own cards?!), card for a baby boy.  The new products I've used are the Baby Steps stamp (gorgeous little elephants, with the sentiment attached, and at only $13.95), Square Lattice embossing folder, Pinking Hearts border punch, and Itty Bitty Bits with the Itty Bitty Shapes punch (there are 3 tiny punches in a set, for $30.95 - great value!).  I just love all of these products - Stampin' Up! doesn't go far wrong in my eyes!

Stamps: Baby Steps, Itty Bitty Bits, Confetti

Card: Crumb Cake, Whisper White, Bashful Blue

DSP: Crumb Cake Patterns Designer Series Paper

Ink: Crumb Cake and Real Red stampin' pads, Versamark inkpad, Whisper White craft stampin' pad

Other: Square Lattice embossing folder, Pinking Hearts border punch, Mat Pack and paper piercing tool, Bashful Blue brads, mini glue dot, sponge daubers, Itty Bitty Shapes punch (3/8" circle)

Lastly, I have made a card using the Love Defined set.  It is a beautiful set of 8 stamps that are very versatile.  Don't you just love the 'grass' with hearts at the top?  I stamped the grass in Blushing Bride and Pink Pirouette inks, and (even though it doesn't show in the photo), stamped it off on the oval sentiment panel.  The sentiment is from a new set called Well Scripted; the font combinations are so beautiful - love them.

Stamps: Love Defined, Well Scripted

Card: Crumb Cake, Whisper White, Melon Mambo, Pink Pirouette

DSP: Crumb Cake Patterns Designer Series Paper

Ink: Crumb Cake, Pink Pirouette, Blushing Bride, Melon Mambo and Basic Black stampin' pads

Other: Basic Rhinestones, Square Lattice embossing folder, Perfect Polka Dots embossing folder, sponge daubers, Wide Oval punch, Lots of Tags sizzlits die, Heart to Heart punch, Stamp-a-ma-jig

Well, that's it from me, so it's time to visit the blog of Alisha Watson - she never fails to amaze me with her out-of-the-box ideas.

Here's a list of all the participants in today's blog hop, so if you lose your way, just pop back here and you can click on anyone's link to visit their blog.  Thanks for stopping by, and have a great weekend!



Ros Davidson
http://www.rosdavidson.typepad.com/

Di Dunk
http://www.stampartbydi.typepad.com/

Judy May
http://www.judymay.typepad.com/

Kathryn Mangelsdorf
http://klm55.blogspot.com/

Nikki Sadler
http://www.inkyart.com.au/

Tina Gillespie
http://scissorspapercard.blogspot.com/

Amy Buchanan
http://www.fashioninggreatimpressions.com/

Christine Blain (that's me!)
http://www.christineblain.blogspot.com/

Alisha Watson
http://www.ratherbstampin.typepad.com/



INKSPIRATIONS COLOUR CHALLENGE #50

I'm back, with blog post number 3 for the day!  This week Makeesha's challenge is to use the following colours on a papercraft project:

Because I'll be working tomorrow (boo hoo), I grabbed the opportunity today to make a simple friendship card that fits this challenge.  My personal challenge was to leave all the edges of the card "un-sponged"; it wasn't easy!  I've inked up my new "Love Defined" stamp set again; I'm loving it!  The background is stamped in Versamark ink, and I've used markers to ink up the little Rich Razzleberry flowers (from Itty Bitty Bits - another gorgeous new set).  The marker colour is a little softer than the bold ink from my juicy inkpad; I wanted a softer look to complement the ribbon colour.  Stampin' Up!'s taffeta ribbons are all slightly lighter in colour than the other styles of ribbon.  The tiny little flowers have been punched out using one of the new Itty Bitty Shapes punches - too cute!

I've taken this photo in fading light outside, so it's a bit out of focus, but hopefully you can still see all the details.

Stamps: Love Defined, Perfect Punches, Itty Bitty Bits

Card: Tempting Turquoise (smooth and textured), Whisper White

Ink: Versamark inkpad, Pear Pizzazz stampin' pad and marker, Tempting Turquoise marker, Rich Razzleberry marker

Other: Top Note die, Curly Label punch, Itty Bitty Shapes punch, Beautiful Wings embosslits, Rich Razzleberry taffeta ribbon, Basic Rhinestones, 2-way glue pen and Dazzling Diamonds, stampin' dimensionals, mini glue dots

INKSPIRATIONS COLOUR CHALLENGE #48

This week's colour combo, at Makeesha's Inkspirations challenge site, is one that I LOOOOVE.   Here are the colours to incorporate in a papercraft project:

I wasn't even tempted to make a Christmas card, because I am making a lot of those at the moment, and needed a bit of a break.  I decided I wanted to use my new "Love Defined" stamp set, that is in Stampin' Up!'s new Summer mini catalogue coming out in a couple of weeks.  (As a demonstrator, I was able to pre-order a few yummy things to have a play with - fun, hey?)  I've also used the gorgeous Square Lattice embossing folder, that is new to Australia (also in the Summer mini).

Stamps: Love Defined, Oval All

Card: Crumb Cake, Whisper White, Real Red

Ink: Crumb Cake stampin' pad and marker, Real Red marker, Old Olive stampin' pad

Other: Top Note die, Large Oval and Scallop Oval punches, Beautiful Wings embosslits, Square Lattice embossing folder, Whisper White organza ribbon, sponge dauber, mini glue dots

CURTAIN CALL COLOUR CHALLENGE #55

Take a look at the great colour combination put forward by Stacey  this week.  I couldn't NOT take part! 

I initially thought of making a card with red and orange flowers, but changed my mind when I received some happy mail, in the form of new Stampin' Up! stamps!  I've got my hot little hands on some gorgeous sets that will be available to order from 1st December.  I couldn't resist having a play with my new "Love Defined" set ... as soon as I saw the tree image (in the Summer Mini catalogue that we demonstrators could pre-order from), I just had to have the set!

I am truly blessed to have in my life a number of beautiful friends, who "get" me.  Nurturing my friendships is very important to me, and is something I am really enjoying having the time to do, now that I don't work in our business full-time.  I love to make "friends" cards, and I decided this colour challenge fit the bill nicely.  Instead of incorporating red and orange flowers on my card, I coloured the heart 'foliage' on the tree stamp, using my Real Red and Tangerine Tango Stampin' Write markers.  Take a look at how cute it is:

.... and here's the inside ....

Stamps: Love Defined (*new*), Teeny Tiny Sentiments

Card: Chocolate Chip, Whisper White (smooth and textured), Tangerine Tango (smooth and textured), Real Red

DSP: Chocolate Chip Patterns Designer Series Paper

Ink: Real Red stampin' pad and marker, Tangerine Tango marker, Chocolate Chip stampin' pad and marker, black fineline marker

Other: Nestabilities, Mat Pack and paper-piercing tool, Basic Black 1/8" taffeta ribbon, Pinking Hearts border punch (*new*), Two-Step XL Owl Punch, corner rounder punch, Full Heart punch, Stamp-a-ma-jig, sponge dauber