Anything goes for me this time!

When Stampin' Up! launched the Daisy Lane Bundle I wonder if they had thought about using it as a Christmas stamp set?  

Our challenge for the Christmas Card Club from Elizabeth was for ornaments this fortnight, but I don't have any ornament stamps at the moment so I've gone for the Anything Goes fail safe option.  I've used the Daisy Lane bundle and turned the beautiful daisy stamps into snowflakes.  I have fallen in love with the new in colour Pretty Peacock and am finding it useful in some many colour combos and here is no exception.  It's simple stamping using one Daisy stamp ontop of the other  to give a snowflake look. By adding some silver and sparkly irredescent sequins it instantly give a Christmas look.  My simple Happy Christmas is done using the carryover Merry Christmas to All stamp set and coordinating Merry Christmas dies. It's a pair of products that you can mix and match to create your sentiment of choice and you can add the happy for example to any birthday that you might already have.  I've cut two happy die cuts one in silver foil card and one in Pretty Peacock.  By just off setting them slightly it creates depth.   The Christmas is heat embossed with silver powder and punched out with the Classic Label punch.

I'm late posting as we are getting Charlie ready for an interview for his next life chapter and also for his school trip to South Africa where he is going to study Elephant migration patterns and learn to scuba dive.  I'm really proud of him as he has worked hard to earn the money to pay for the trip himself by getting his first job and also washing cars at my crafting events for the lovely ladies.  Exciting times for him and us as we watch him grow into a young adult.  

Don't forget you can check out more inspiration from the other ladies in the Christmas CC via the link above.  

The Daisy Lane stamp set or stamp and medium daisy punch bundle is available for purchase along with the Merry Christmas products in my online Stampin' Up! shop.

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Thanks for popping by.

Happy crafting Zoe x

Stampin' Up! Painted Seasons Mixed Media Style

Stampin' Up! Painted Seasons - Mixed Media style

Today I'm sharing something a little different from the usual clean cut Stampin' Up! design and yet I'm still using Stampin' Up! products.  I've taken the Painted Seasons stamp set in another route to create a different look and I really enjoyed tinkering with inks, sponges and watercolour.  I'm also participating in a mini blog hop with my lovely friend and fellow Stampin' Up! demonstrator, Shannean Moncrieff in Australia.  She has some Home to Roost stamp set ideas to share with you to give you some inspiration for  two sets which  are part of the  super FREE gifts available this month from Stampin' Up! with a qualifying order. 

A different look for Painted Seasons

I started by stamping the images onto a piece of watercolour paper and then spritz gently with water to get the ink to run and blend.  I quickly dabbed off excess water with kitchen towel and heat set it all with my heat tool. I stamped the mini stars over the top and also added some gold embossed stars. With sponges I added extra colour to fill in the white space and also to define the edges of the watercolour paper.  I used Melon Mambo, Coastal Cabana and Granny Apple Green inks and lightly, free hand stamped the flowers again to add some detail back to them.  Torn edges of scraps sponged to deepen the tones create interest at the bottom of the card and allow for a touch of sponged Botanical Butterfly Designer Series Paper to be added along with a torn extract nearer to the top.

My matting layer is a piece of whisper white card which I sponged to get a 'softer' shade of Melon Mambo and having defined the edge of the watercolour paper with sponging I also flicked my Versamark ink pad along the edges to add random smudges of gold embossing to define it further before adding to the matt layer.  

The sentiment is partly die cut in gold foil card and the remainder stamped with Versamark and heat set with white embossing powder on black card stock.  The sentiment is from the awesome Stampin' Up! bundle Well Said which is so worth the investment!

I've entered my card into the Craft Stamper Magazine Take it Make it Challenge also. You can join the challenge HERE

The second half of the bundle is a pack of beautifully hand painted then printed designer series papers.  You can see the whole bundle in my Stampin' Up! Online Shop

Now check out Shannean's design for another take on this gorgeous stamp set bundle.  

Thanks for visiting Zoe x

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You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Totally Techniques Stampin' Up! Demonstrator Blog Hop - Polished Stone

Hello all, welcome to November's  Totally Techniques Stampin' Up! Demonstrator Blog hop.  You might have just checked in from my lovely friend Kelly over in the USA.  She's sharing an awesome design, so be sure to right around the hop to see hers (if you started here) and all the other demonstrator designs.    This month we are sharing the Polished Stone technique. It's really simple and you can create your own designs and then die cut or use as a patterned paper.  

For my card I used the shadow/aperture left once I had die cut the largest snowflake from the very very soon to retire  snowfall thin lets as a frame over my polished stone piece.  I've added a galvanised metallic snowflake and one of glimmer paper.   The sentiment is from Stampin' Up! Winter catalogue set Merry Christmas to All and is heat embossed with whisper white on black card.  To add more sparkle I wrapped several rounds of silver thread across the base of the card having 'knicked' the two sides with a 1/8" circle punch.  I've added a matting layer of the galvansied metallic foil card and a snowflake trinket.  

To create the Polished Stone 

1. Soak a cotton wool ball/pad in rubbing alcohol.

2. Add drops of ink to the pad this can be a single colour or two or three. You can experiment with colour mixes, but darker probably needs less drops so as not to over power the lighter tones.

3. Squeeze and dab the pad all over glossy card stock. 

4. Allow to dry a little it doesn't take long as the alchol evaporates.

5. As it dries soak another cotton wool ball with rubbing alcohol and add drops of another colour ink and a drop of shimmer paint.  There are four to choose from in the current Stampin' Up! winter catalogue Bright Copper, Champagne Mist, Frost White, and Vegas Gold.  I used the Champagne Mist for this design. 

6. Gently squeeze, while dabbing to spread the shimmer and additonal colour across your work.  

7. You can revisit with the first colours if you wish or create a lighter version on an additional piece of glossy card stock to create another project. 

To this particular piece I also added some splatter. To do this I put the nib of a Stampin' Marker into carefully into the marker lid and flicked the nib out repeatedly to splatter ink over the polished stone which then gives the impression of more texture within the faux stone. 

I used Pool Party, Balmy Blue inks and Champagne Mist shimmer paint.  The Poppy Parade marker was used for the splatter. 

Enjoy the hop! 

Zoe x

Blog List 

1. 1. Zoe Tant - UK - You're here
2. 2. Shannean Moncrieff - Australia
3. 3. Nadine Weiner - Germany
4. 4. Lynsay Mahon - Canada
5. 5. Barbara Meyer - Austria
6. 6. Kelly Acheson - USA

You can find these products in my online shop

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It's time for Christmas Card Club today.  I've taken the option of Anything Goes for my theme as opposed to Nativity chosen by Margaret down in Australia.  

I'm sharing some cards I've made using sneak peeks from the winter catalogue coming soon and also this month's limited edition stamp and die bundle from Stampin' Up! Blended Seasons. 

The card above is one we made at card club earlier this month. It's really easy and the beautiful papers do the talking for you.  From one 12 x 12 (30.5cm x 30.5cm) sheet of patterned paper you can make at least 7 cards.  Cut three strips that are 10cm x 30.5cm.  Then cut two matt layers from each strip that are 10cm x 14.3cm.  Keep the off cut ends for a further card that you can see below.  

I then cut a stitched shape using the dies from the Blended Seasons and used the Stampin Up Stamparatus positioning tool to stamp the holly in versa mark and heat embossed with gold powder.  The Stamparatus was also used to stamp Merry Christmas from the same set in Cherry Cobbler ink.  This piece is simply layered onto the designer paper and you have simple but effective cards that are easy to post and quick to make.  If you do each stage of the card and prep several you can have many made in a short time, leaving time for the special family cards we all like to make. 

Remember the off cuts from above this is where I used them.  The beauty of Stampin' Up! papers is that they are double sided and so you can mix and match strips to create a design that suits you.  I've simply stuck them on a thick white card base and added the die cut sentiment from the incoming Merry Christmas Thinlet Dies.  You'll see below that I didn't waste the negative of the sentiment and carefully saved the mini pieces to add to all the letter loops for the card below.  This is champagne foil card on a real red card base.  To make this really easy use double sided adhesive sheets on the reverse of your foil card before die cutting. 

Also before sticking I ran the negative through the big shot with a new embossing folder called Swirls and Curls.  

With this simple approach I'll have fab Christmas cards lined up in no time! That's my plan anyway. 

I hope you'll look around the other ladies in our group for more Christmas card inspiration. You can find them in the CC Club tab above.  

The Colour Your Season products are only available this month and will not appear in a future catalogue with the exception of the watercolour pencils.  You can shop online to buy individual items or you can buy the stamps and dies as a bundle and save 10%.  SHOP NOW

Thanks for dropping by. 

Hugs Zoe x

Dandelion Wishes from Stampin Up

Hey there my lovelies I'm sorry I've been missing for a while recovering from jet lag after the most amazing holiday and Stampin' Up! incentive trip.
I will share some pictures of the trip for those not on facebook, but you can see some on my FB page at www.facebook.com/zoetant.  However firstly today I have a card for you as the mojo has found a little energy.

I've made this for a friend and I hope it hits the right spot.  I've used Stampin' Up! Dandelion Wishes which is one of my favourites at the moment .  You can see another post here for Dandelion Wishes .

For this card I stamped the image in versa mark ink and then heat embossed with white powder.  I used my new Granny Apple Green (a colour that conjures up some delish images don't you think!) Blends pens to colour the stalk as the alcohol ink sticks to the embossed image.  I smudged a little bronze too on the inner stamens of the seeds and also added a ball of embossing paste that I had created by rolling a spot of the paste between my thumb and finger tip.  Don't take too long with this as you then want to push a ball onto the centre of your dandelion and want the paste to stick.  I used a sponge dauber to then add some Champagne Mist Shimmer Paint to each blob.  The shimmer paints are returning soon in some old favourite colours and a couple of fabulous new.  Watch for those as your winter catalogues come through.  Contact me for your copy if you haven't ordered from me in the past 6 months.

I die cut the image which I'd stamped on basic black card using layered circle dies and added a scalloped circle in Granny Apple Green to frame the image.  I layered both of these onto strips of card and a sneak peek at some super Christmas washi tape that is also coming soon.  The sentiment is from the same set and I used marvellous marker pens to add colour to the stamp prior to stamping on the card.  The usual rhinestones as some bling that you know I love and it's done all on a thick whisper white card base.

Have you got your Dandelion Wishes set yet?  Great time this month with a Bonus Coupon coming your way when you spend a minimum of £45.  Keep an eye out for the coupon which comes via email and you'll be able to use it in September to purchase anything you want either online or via me from the winter or annual catalogue.

More soon as slowly the jet lag ebbs.

Hugs Zoe x

Rooted in Nature with Sponge Brayering

I just adore this new Stampin' Up! set, Rooted in Nature.  It's got so so much potential and I'm seeing so many fabulous projects made with it.  You can see another design from me at Rooted in Nature coming soon.

For my card I created a stencil using window sheet and then used a sponge brayer to add three colours starting with the palest of Grapefruit Grove and working through with Melon Mambo and Fresh Fig.  The sponge brayers are great if like me you're not great at using rubber brayers.  It allows gentle, more controlled addition of colour to your card.  I then stamped the tree branch cross section in Fresh Fig directly on top. then added a stamped on vellum and die cut tree, rock and rolled and die cut leaves, burlap and ribbon which were stapled on and just peek out.  I've layered my decorated top layer onto Fresh Fig card and a whisper white card base.  I added the black rhinestones as the top right hand corner one hides a finger Blurp!!! We all do them and usually just as you finish your creation so I didn't want it spoilt lol.

The great news is that by creating your stencil/mask with window sheet you can wipe off the excess ink and keep for future designs.

I'm hosting the next challenge on Moving Along with the Times this week so check back Thursday for my design and the reveal of the challenge.

Thanks for dropping in.

Zoe x

Stampin' Up! Catalogue 2018 - 2019

Launched today the new Stampin' Up! catalogue is full to bursting with fabulous new stamp sets, dies and lots of new colours and embellishments.

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Beautiful Day Stampin' Up! is just that....

I've shared my first make for the June issue of Craft Stamper magazine and here is the second.  The Stampin Up set Beautiful Day is just a small set with BIG WOW. It is home to the beautiful butterfly you've seen in so many places and also this stunning flower and a couple of simple sentiments. I've shortened  one to make mine having stamped it and then cut the words I wanted to use free hand.

The design itself started with the flower being embossed with copper embossing powder and then coloured with the Stampin Up Blends.  Sadly these are currently unavailable to purchase as the demand was so high we simply ran out and so are waiting for more from the manufacturer, but I wanted to share my design as I was so delighted with it.  To add a little more definition I also stamped a spare flower onto a spare piece of card ie thick whisper white which is perfect for use with alcohol markers like the Stampin Up Blends.  I embossed and coloured it in the same way and fussy cut it out and then added it to the design using Stampin dimensionals just to lift it and also off set it slightly from the main card.  To finish off I colour washed the remaining space and added the sentiment.

I love Craft Stamper magazine not only because I was asked again to design for an article featuring Stampin' Up!, but also as it is such a good read and full of useful techniques and information.  

I'm also delighted that this stamp set will remain in the Stampin' Up! new annual catalogue.  It's inexpensive, but as I've already said big on the Wow factor.  I hope you like it too.... 

You can contact me to request a copy of the new Stampin' Up! catalogue by emailing me at zoetant@live.co.uk

Thanks for stopping by and one last reminder that the retiring list from Stampin' Up! will disappear on 31 May so don't miss out on those last minute wish list items or you'll be very sad.  

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more soon 

Zoe x

Quick and Easy Teacher gifts for Thinking Outside the Box

Welcome everyone to our monthly Thinking Outside the Box blog hop. Hello if you've just arrived from Yoshiko and her super cute gift box.  You can see several different varieties of gift box tutorials under the theme of

This month's theme for Thinking Outside the Box Blog Hop

We've all created a different box and are sharing free tutorials that you are welcome to use.  I usually do a video too, but am still working on getting my Achilles tendon sorted so hopefully I'll have a video soon and will link back.  In the meantime I've got some simple instructions and a template for you to copy of my pretty teacher gift.  I've filled mine with fragrant tea lights, but you could fill with chocolates, pencils or something else. Once you know how to make the box you can adapt for different contents.  

Ok so here's what to do

1. start with a piece of card or thick DSP like the Share What You Love papers that I have used from Stampin' Up!.  It needs to be cut at 24 x 30.5 cm (9"  x 12")
2. In the landscape position score at 9cm, 18cm, 22cm, 24cm, 28cm and 30cm.  (31/2",7",81/2", 91/4", 103/4" and 111/2")
3. In portrait score at 2cm or 3/4" in from both sides.  
4. Cut an aperture of your choice in the panel shown as 'cut window' . Mine is 2cm x 16cm.  You can use your Stampin' trimmer to cut the aperture or a craft knife.   I've cut it 2cm away from the side score lines and left a 1cm border along the long sides of the window. 
5. cut away the shaded areas and cut the lines that are solid on the template ie those that will form the flaps on the box ends.  
6. adhere a piece of window sheet on the inside of the box to cover the aperture. Mine is 3cm x 18cm
7. Fold all the score lines which are marked with a dotted line.  
8. Add tear and tape to the very thin strip at the top of the template this will fold over to form the box when you bring that end so that the tape sits along the 18cm/7" score line.  
9. Add your contents and secure one end of the box with tear and tape, tombow or other adhesive.  
10. Use ribbon or twine to secure the other end and allow for easy opening by tying it around the length of the box a couple of times.  
11. Decorate your box and you'll see it has a card already attached.  I added a inside piece of coordinating patterned paper which you can do also or you can leave it as the reverse of the original piece. 

Blog List

1. Shannean Moncrieff
2. Tanja Kolar
3. Yoshiko Endo
4. Zoe Tant - You are here 
5. Annette Elias
6. Dena Rekow
7. Beate Wacker
8. Aude Barbara

Rooted in Nature coming soon to Stampin' Up!

I adore this fabulous new bundle from Stampin' Up!. It's called Rooted in Nature and includes a set of stamps and a set of dies.  It's perfect for male cards, but will lend itself to memory keeping, Christmas cards and lots, lots more.  I've made this card using the dies and stamps and you can also see that the leaves which I die cut for the background are also embossed with leaf veins as the dies include 3 pieces that don't cut but emboss your card or you can emboss the die cuts that they coordinate with.

We have some new pearlised doilies too which you can see immediately on this card as I've fussy cut off the scalloped rim and used the reverse of the doily and sponge brayered it with Cajun Craze ink.

I created the back ground as I've mentioned by die cutting and embossing leaf shapes in two sizes which I then stuck with tombow to a piece of very vanilla card.  It's tone on tone but sufficient to give a texture background. I cut the piece to the required size and matted it onto a piece of Soft Suede card.  I've then built up my focal point using burlap ribbon, copper foil die cut and embossed leaves and stamped leaves on a stitched frame lit circle.  The sentiment is part of the Rooted in Nature set which i've cut into strips and used the parts I wanted having stamped the images in different colours. I can keep the pieces I didn't use for another card.  I've also added a wooden element which is retiring soon so maybe think about stocking up now before they disappear at the end of the month.

This is such an awesome set of stamps and dies that are fab for multimedia creations with so much texture already in the bundle.

You can see it in the new catalogue from 1 June and if you've shopped with me in the past 6 months you'll receive a complimentary copy of the 2018 - 2019 Stampin' Up! annual catalogue. If you haven't  shopped, but would like a copy of the catalogue please contact me at zoetant@live.co.uk

Thanks for checking in today. I hope you'll love this set as much as me. Be assured I'll be sharing more projects using it soon.

Hugs Zoe x

Share What You Love - Love what you do

Stampin' Up! 2018 Incentive Trip to Alaska Blog Hop

Share What You Love Stampin' Up! Stamp Set is so pretty

Welcome to this monthly blog hop where we are sharing inspiration for the early release Stampin' Up! Share What You Love Suite.  It's a suite of products that are just gorgeous and so feminine.  You'll want to use them on lots of projects.

My cards today feature the Love What You Do stamp set and the new in colour Grapefruit Grove and the returning colour Mint Macaron.  Although this stamp set includes a stamp that could act as a water  colour wash image I've used an aqua painter on shimmery white card to create my own wash picking up ink from inside the lid of the ink pad.  Our new ink pads are not so easy to 'squeeze' to get onto the lid inside, but I've found that if place the closed pad face down on a firm surface and firmly push it to the table it works better than just squeezing in your hands.

I've also used the little floral shower stamp to add some tone on tone background stamping.  I've added gold thread wrapped around the stamped layer along with lace and some random mini gold sequins.  I very narrow matt layer of Grapefruit Grove sets the art work off, on the very vanilla card base which is approx 4.5inches square.

I used a staple to ensure the lace stayed in place as it's not easy to glue without making a mess or having sticky coming through but I wanted to cover the staples on each card so having fussy cut my gold embossed flowers I stuck them on with Stampin' dimensionals and added some baker's twine.  This started life as white but using a coffee stick I pulled the thread across the ink pad allowing the pressure of the stick on it to push the white twine into the ink and colour it.  You need to make sure you let it dry then before tying bows.

Using the same techniques I created the cards below, but brought in some Mint Macaron card for a slightly different look.  I also added sequin trim to these.

All these products are available this month as bundles put together by Stampin' Up! and each bundle has a bonus free gift included.  You can learn a little more about the products in the Stampin' Up! video below. 

Click this image to visit my Stampin' Up! Online Shop  

Enjoy the hop and thanks for stopping by here with me Stampin' Up! UK Independent Demonstrator Zoe Tant.

Hugs  Zoe x

Totally Techniques - Emboss Resist with video tutorial

The Totally Techniques team of international Stampin' Up! demonstrators is here again with another blog hop sharing our individual projects showcasing the emboss resist technique for paper crafters.  

Welcome to everyone visiting and hello.  If you've just arrived from Marine's blog you've already seen a fabulous example of this super easy, but fun technique.

For my example I've used the Stampin' Up! Eastern Beauty stamp set to create this circular design that could be used for anyone as a birthday card all you need to do is change the colours.  In fact if you know a tennis fan the lemon lime twist version I have shared would be perfect .  

emboss resist technique with Stampin Up bermuda bay and blueberry bushel

To show you how it is done I've recorded this video to help you and all you'll need is the basic ink paper and stamps to get started with a versa mark ink pad, clear or white embossing powder and a heat tool.  

TOP TIP

Now lots of folk ask 'can i use a hair dryer instead of a heat gun?' and sadly the answer is no because the hair dryer would blow aware the looser specks of embossing powder and also the heat is probably not quite hot enough.  You always need to be careful with heat embossing as the tool is very hot and you need to remember to put it down safely and in a sensible place where it doesn't cause any damage to the surface you place it on due to temperature of it once used. 

Emboss resist technique using Stampin Up Eastern Beauty and Perennial Birthday stamp sets

If you liked the video please subscribe to my channel to encourage me to make more useful tutorial videos for you.  Thanks for popping by and you're off to see Kelly in the USA now. 

Hugs Zoe x

1. Zoe Tant(UK) 2. Kelly Acheson(USA) 3. Nadine Weiner(Germany) 4. Lynsay Mahon(Canada) 5. Barbara Meyer(Austria) 6. Paula Dobson(New Zealand) 7. Annette Elias(The Netherlands) 8. Marine Wiplier(France)