Stampin' Up! Creative Elements

stampin up creative elements

At times do you ever think that your hobby is overtaking your life a little too much...........!  My children thought that I'd really lost it over half term when a lunchtime meal in a nice restaurant turned into Mum stealing their notebook to write down the colours and sketch the design of the wallpaper in the restaurant.  It was really lovely and here I've made my version of it with a few Stampin' Up! additions, having patiently waited for the cherry cobbler embossing powder to arrive last week.

It's a little bit of emboss resist with the swirls being stamped in versamark and heat embossed with clear embossing powder on river rock cardstock.  You can see other examples of emboss resist here and here . Using a brayer you can then cover the card with a different colour, here soft suede.  Emboss again with cherry cobbler embossing powder,  add yourself some stunning flowers from the creative elements stamp set and you've got wall paper from a restaurant on your card.  Of course you can also have lush cherry cobbler seam binding, rippled over soft suede designer series paper with a subtle, but rich early espresso scallop trim border backing.

And of course it's sale-a-bration time so you can use the free gift with purchase to add a perch for the beautiful butterfly from the creative elements set.

The swirl is part of the exclusive hostess stamp set Precious Butterflies and is also free if you host a party with qualifying sales.  Can you also spot the antique brad which adds more luxury to this very rich card.

Don't forget the inside of your card can be decorated too, but they didn't go this far in the restaurant!

Supplies

Stamp sets - Creative Elements, Precious Butterflies (hostess), Elementary Elegance (SAB)

Inks - versamark, cherry cobbler, soft suede, early espresso

cardstock - early espresso, river rock, neutrals designer series paper stack

accessories - cherry cobbler seam binding, scallop trim border punch, antique brads, paper piercer and mat pack, curly label punch, marker pens

Challenges

Creative Mondays - Anything goes

Make it Monday - anything goes

So Shelli Creative Challenge

Inspired by doors!

'Oh no!'  I hear you cry, 'she's doing Christmas!'  Well yes a bit, but since last year when I took the photos above I've been wanting to make a card inspired by our front door!  I've seen lots of other folk make beautiful cards depicting a door with a wreath and I wanted something similar but a little different and hence my front door!

The wreath is made using our new perfect pennants die and I've threaded lush real red satin ribbon through the punched holes on wild wasabi cardstock.  One of the Delicate Doilies stamps has provided a super centre piece and shows once again the versatility of Stampin' Up!'s sets.  I've also added some of the new mini brads to the centre of each 'flower' which you can see more clearly below.

The door itself is scored using my paper trimmer and the door furniture has been embossed with black emboss powder onto basic black cardstock and it gives a shine and a slightly hammered effect.  The studs copied from our Victorian door were painstakingly punched using the cropadile and carefully sticking them on with two way glue and a cocktail stick!

You may know that Shelli Gardner, CEO of Stampin' Up!, runs a monthly challenge on her blog So Shelli and this month she's challenged folk to use the new Simply Scored Tool that Stampin' Up! has launched in the US, but we have yet to experience this useful piece of kit (patience people it will come I'm sure you just need to spend a bit more to convince the US executives to grow us a bit more each year!!!) therefore I've used my trimmer to give the effect of the old oak boards.

The final touch is a smidge of basic black taffeta ribbon to hold the door handle on and what most folk would say is just about as much of the 'white stuff' as they want to see.

Well it does now seem odd as I type this post that 10 days ago we had a heat wave, today we have a beautiful autumnal sunny day and in a week or so the weather forecast suggests snow!  It was the strangest feeling recently walking to or village church for Harvest Festival to be dressed in summer frocks with sandals and yet crunching leaves at the same time. 

I hope whatever the weather with you as you visit here that life is good and you have a great day!

Back soon

Zx

USA National Scrapbooking Month

Click on an image for a closer larger view

In the USA this month it's National Scrapbook Month and although I'm a tail end Charlie I have finally got around to putting a couple of pages together which is still quite a challenge for me.  I've not done a lot of scrapbooking, but following our fabulous holiday in Italy visiting Rome, Florence and Pisa I couldn't let some of our fab photos go unnoticed. 

Top above is I think one of my favourite shots of Olivia.  Like most girls she's happy to pose and this shot was taken in The Forum under the beautiful wisteria.  I've used some retired dsp and buttons along with basic black stripe grosgrain ribbon and my trusty Spot On stampin' around wheel.  The whole page has so much of life wrapped up in it.  To start with there's this wonderful picture of my darling (well most of the time she is....)  daughter, memories of a wonderful well spent family holiday and my Stampin' Up journey as this wheel was in my starter kit!  It also shows that we can blend our old stash with new and bring it all to life. 

The bottom two pictures are of my page featuring Cheeky Charlie!  We were on a train journey at the end of a long sightseeing day trip to Pisa.  Charlie had finished his lolli from the pound shop (dollar store) and made us all laugh as he pretended to smoke the stick.  Of course as a mother it then brings home the realisation of how much others and the world around us influences our children and at that moment I prayed he'd never take up smoking for real! 

This page includes celebrations quick accents and designer series paper along with varsity alphabet stamp set and journalling by my own fair hand in pacific point marker.

The next set of photographs are my next scrap page/s challenge with the following titles.

 Hand of young girl!

Not quite feet of small boy!

Finger of God!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  ???

I have to say that the visit to Pisa was a fun day.  Martin, faced his fear of heights as he shimmied around the top of the tower.  The children enjoyed posing for the right shot and the rest of the visitors to Pisa took part in the weirdest tai chi class you have ever seen!  I let you work that bit out but just think about lots of people standing around with their arms in the air!

On that note I'll leave you and go to sign up to Shelli's Creative Challenge.

Happy crafting.

Hugs Zx

C for cupcake, chocolate, candy......................or Charlie!

zoe tant stampin up demonstrator

Isn't it funny how sometimes good things all start with the same letter like cupcakes, chocolate and candy!  Who cares really which letter they start with when they all taste that good!  Today I'm sharing my cupcake with you.  I love signs and have wanted to have a go at something along a sign line for a while and Shelli's creative challenge this month has inspired me to finally get around to it.  It just so happens that I love all these 'C' words too!  Sadly it's all those things that remind me of the phrase 'A moment on the lips, a lifetime on the hips!'  Ah well you have to enjoy life and if creating, inspiring and sharing means C for cupcakes, chocolate and candy I'm in!

The downside with projects like this is that they don't easily fit into my photo cube and the light today isn't great for pictures, but hopefully the selection of shots gives you the general 'C' idea!!! Are you getting my drift now! Yes I have a sweet tooth.

When the in colours arrived, I have to admit I wasn't keen, but it's like lots of things once you try them you can't say no.  I've fallen for them now and the whole sign is decked out in 'in colours'.  From our paper stack of in colour dsp I've decorated the background and embossed my own wall paper print from Crazy for Cupcakes in white.  Chipboard letters have been coloured with markers and embossed in clear several times to give an enamelled effect and the 'c' got the dazzling diamonds treatment.  Punches have given a base to the 'for' and the cupcake case is made by fan folding a piece of dsp to give a concertina which I've then adhered to the base.  My 'frosting' is made by stamping one of the tree tops from Trendy Trees on blushing bride cardstock in versamark and then I've used heat and stick and dazzling diamonds to give the rich, piped effect.  My cherry is poppy parade with a linen thread stem and to bring the whole thing together I've used poppy parade stitched poly ribbon. 

Of course one thing that my son has reminded me about is that I could have made this to say 'C for Charlie'  which potentially throws my theory about good, sweet things all beginning with the same letter, straight out the window!!!!!!!!!  Thankfully he has his moments!!!

Happy Crafting
Hugs Zx