holiday card workshop day1

Hello, flying in here today to share some cards I made as a participant in the latest Online Card Class - Holiday Card Workshop. I was so excited when the class started yesterday - my holiday card stash is way off the numbers it needs to be and I'm going to thoroughly enjoy this class while hopefully getting this sorted :) Day 1 of the class looked at making card sets. My card was inspired after seeing the most wonderful coffee cup design - seriously stunning and would make drinking coffee out of a disposable cup so cool! This is what I came up with:

Please excuse the slightly off photos - the weather is grim and dull here and I had to resort to lights - ughh :( Anyway, on to the card; I recently got the fun Hero Arts set Holiday Conversations. I stamped one of the speech bubbles in black ink onto the centre of a 3.5 inch white piece of card. Then I masked the sentiment before stamping the chevrons in red over the top. I mounted the panel onto a 3.75 inch red glitter card and then onto a 4 inch white card base. Very simple but eye-catching and easy to mass produce :)

I did a couple in the red colour way and a couple in green. 

I hope you get the chance to join in with the class!

Supplies: Stamps - Hero Arts holiday conversations, zig zag; Inks - Versafine onyx black, Versacolor scarlet, Amuse grass; Red and green glitter card

tsg179 happy haunting!

Over at There She Goes this week Kelly has challenged us to make a card or project inspired by the colours of her favourite drink - pumpkin spice coffee!

Isn't that just great - a flavoursome colour inspiration! Now I've never tried pumpkin spice coffee so I took my inspiration from those fall leaves to make a slightly different autumnal Halloween card.

I actually quite like the autumn colours paired with the Halloween reaper image - this is quite like our Halloween will be as the leaves are showering down on us at the moment and so pretty in their hues.

One last thing, yesterday I talked about the eyes on my mummy! Here's a close up to see the eyes and the way that the black enamel puddled into the wet glossy accents.

Now here's a look at the eyes on today's reaper - black enamel eyes with white enamel on top. This time I made sure the bottom layer was perfectly dry before adding the top layer - the result is some spooky eyeball popping fun!

Supplies: Stamps - There She Goes bugs & hisses, autumn; Inks - Memento tuxedo black, Versafine onyx black; Card - Stampin' Up basic black, Neenah solar white; Paper - October Afternoon weathervane; Markers; Ranger enamel accents black, white; Distress markers; Die - Memory Box woodland branch; Stickles glitter glue

don't worry

This is my second post today; please scroll down to see if you are the winner of the slot on the latest Online Card Class - Holiday Card Workshop!

I couldn't resist one last card before Halloween with the wonderful Hauntingly Delightful set from There She Goes. I'd coloured the cute mummy image the other day and then when I saw the latest CAS(E) this sketch I thought he'd just fit perfectly in the little window of the sketch :)

After my last Online Card Class (Kick Start) where the delightful Kathy Racoosin was featured showing how she adds interest to her coloured pieces with gel pen, enamel accents, glossy accents, glitter etc I've been trying to take my images that one step further. I loved adding a deep pool of glossy accents to this mummy's eyes and then finding that if you add black enamel accents for the pupils too early, before the gloss has fully set, then you get a wonderful puddling effect of the enamel within the gloss. Gives this cute guy a sort of cross eyed look which I love! You see being impatient has it's benefits at times LOL. Just as a note, if I'd left the gloss to dry fully and then added the enamel accents then the enamel would've sat on top of the gloss looking like the pupils were bulging out of the eyes - got to try a bit more patience and give this a go too :)

Behind the mummy I've used the lovely new colour from Papertrey Ink, limeade ice, and their sunrise impression plate - trying to give the look of the spooky green light exploding through the window.

Oh by the way, here's the sketch if you want to give it a go, I think the closing date is Tuesday October 30th:

Supplies: Stamps - There She Goes hauntingly delightful; Inks - Versamark, Memento tuxedo black; Card - Papertrey Ink limeade ice, Stampin' Up basic black; Embossing powder - Hero Arts white; Ribbon - Ribbon Carousel; Ranger glossy accents; Ranger black enamel accents; Die - There She Goes web; Papertrey Ink sunrise impression plate; Ranger Distress Stickles rock candy

winner!

Popping in today to announce the winner of the place on the latest Online Card Class - Holiday Card Workshop!

The winner is number 7:

Larissa Heskett!!

AWESOME!! I CAN'T wait for the FUN class, and I'd LOVE to win a spot!! THANKS for sharing and for the chance to wina spot!! Have a FABULOUS WEEK!! =)

Larissa, drop me an email and I will get this sorted for you :)

I am so looking forward to the start of the class tomorrow!

cas-ual fridays challenge 76

Wohoo Friday at last LOL! Which means it's time for a CAS-ual Fridays post :) Have you checked out the new CAS-ual Fridays Stamps blog to see if your name is up as one of the winners of the new stamps :) If you weren't lucky this time and you want to get hold of some CFS goodness then pop by the store as I believe it is now open for business!

Moving on to our challenge this week and we want you to kraft on! Yep use some kraft on your creation :) Our sponsor this week is non other than the fabulous new CAS-ual Fridays Stamps with a Gift Certificate to the new store!

Now I don't use kraft that often. I tend to use the lighter card bases; white, soft stone, cream etc so this challenge took me slightly away from my norm which is good as that's what a challenge should do LOL. So here's my card:

I used the flower image from Truth Is and the sentiment comes from Calm and Gentle :) I stamped the flowers in a pale grey and then set to with my new pencils. So far I've only got 3 blues, 3 greens, black and white but I do love the different effect you can get - depth of colour and yet with a softness too. After colouring the flower I stamped the sentiment over the top with Versafine onyx black. I held my breath doing it as I wasn't sure how the ink would cover over the pencil lines but I needn't have worried as all was good :)

Well this week is bitter sweet. We have CAS-ual Fridays Stamps open for business and the fun and celebrations that have surrounded the launch have been amazing. However, some of the Design Team have other exciting opportunities in their future which means that we have to say a sad farewell to Karolyn, Julie, Jenny and Stephanie :( I will miss you girls but hope that you have great fun in your new adventures :)

Supplies: Stamps - CAS-ual Fridays Stamps truth is, calm and gentle; Inks - Versafine onyx black; Card - Neenah solar white, Papertrey Ink kraft; Faber Castell pencils; Stampin' Up rhinestones

holiday card class giveaway!

Edited to add:

The comments are now closed! I will draw and announce a winner tomorrow :)

You could've knocked me down with a feather when I was asked if I'd like to be a part of the latest Online Card Classes - Holiday Card Workshop! Seriously, I'm still recovering from the shock LOL.

More good news is that I've been given a slot in the class to give away! Wohoo! Here's a little info:

All NEW for 2012 - Holiday Card Workshop from Online Card Classes! Join a team of incredible artists for a holiday cardmaking class, featuring different styles of stamps and a variety of supplies!

We cardmakers love the holidays—perhaps more than any other time of the year! It's the time when we can really stretch our cardmaking muscles with holiday cards. Whether those cards are intricate, inky masterpieces or clean and simple creations, Christmas and holiday cards are some of the most fun to create!

Join instructors Kristina Werner, Jennifer McGuire, and special guest artists (including me!) for 20+ videos and well over 30 card ideas! Online Card Classes' Holiday Card Workshop includes tips, tricks, techniques, shopping discounts, giveaways, videos, instructional PDFs, and more. And, as always, you will have lifetime access to the class content. 

To register, visit Holiday Card Workshop.

So if you leave me a comment on this post before Saturday 27 October 5pm UK time (1pm EST) I will draw and announce a winner on Sunday :) I can't wait!!

awesome

What do you do when you've just arrived home from a few days away with the family and you need two teenage boy cards for the next day? Well I turn to a challenge to get the mojo going and there's a new challenge I wanted to try; CAS(E) This Sketch :) Here's my card:

And here's the sketch:

I do find boy cards difficult, and teenage boy cards even more so! I don't have any of the lovely neon inks yet but I dug around in my collection and found two bright Versacolor ones; lime and orange and by adding in the blue card base I'm hoping these colours will fit in with most boys LOL. Then I made a  matching money envelope - presents for teenage boys are even harder than cards and this way they can chose something they like :)

The youngest goes back to school tomorrow and the other two on Tuesday, so that's another holiday gone in the blink of an eye. I can't believe I'm thinking that the next time we get a decent break will be Christmas!

Supplies: Stamps - Wplus9 so 80s; Inks - Versafine onyx black, Versacolor lime, orange; Card - Stampin' Up island indigo; Dies - Papertrey Ink seed packet, tag sale 5; Brad - Stampin' Up; Adhesive rhinestone stars

cas-ual fridays stamps sneak peek!

So did you see? Did you go check it out? I can now officially say that CAS-ual Fridays is starting it's own stamp line; CAS-ual Fridays Stamps!!!!

I've been dying to shout from the roof tops for so long and it is such a relief to finally be able to share :) I can't wait any longer so here's a peek from the set entitled "WTF" hehe!

This set is so fun! Filled with play on words sentiments in fabulous fonts I haven't seen anything like it on the market. I used the stamps to create a little check list; there are lots of different sentiments in the set to play around with along with some border strips too :)

CAS-ual Fridays Stamps are made in USA from the finest quality photopolymer. There will be 5 stamp sets released on 26 October and over the next few days the Design Team will be giving you sneak peeks of what's to come. Now importantly you need to pop by the new CAS-ual Fridays Stamps blog to keep up with all the news, peeks, special guests and ......... prizes! By commenting on the store blog for each of the sneak posts you will become eligible for a chance to win that stamp set! If you miss a day or so, no worries, go back and comment on each post as comments won't close until Wednesday at 11.59pm :) The winners will be announced on Thursday and then the store opens it's doors on Friday! Friday folks - mark your calendars :) Oh one last thing; by playing along with this week's CAS-ual Fridays challenge you have a chance of winning the entire release!

Supplies: Stamps - CAS-ual Fridays Stamps WTF; Inks - Martha Stewart Meyer lemon, hibiscus, pink carnation, ocean, Versafine smoky gray; Card - Stampin' Up basic gray; Paper - Studio Calico abroad collection; Dies - Lil' Inker Designs stitched mats; Twine - The Twinery pink sorbet; Clip - Stampin' Up

cas-ual fridays challenge 75

First off I'm going to get straight to business and say that this weeks CAS-ual Fridays challenge is to create a project with something peeking over the edge :) 

Now I can move straight on to the excitement that is building over at CAS-ual Fridays! Something HUGE is going on! And a special sponsor is joining in the fun too! In fact I used a snippet of the sponsors' stamps in my card today :)

Inspiration came from the wonderful Cristina - loved her use of neutrals with negative die cut backed by stripes :)

What, you're still here? Get on over to CAS-ual Fridays to find out all the news!

Supplies: Inks - Versafine smoky gray; Card - Papertrey Ink soft stone; Paper - Stampin' Up designer series patterns stack in color 2011-2013; Dies - Lil' Inker Designs flags & tags, Papertrey Ink tag sale 3, by the numbers; Embossing Folder - Lifestyle Crafts; Ribbon - Stampin' Up old olive; Button - Papertrey Ink

case study challenge 113

Over at CASE Study I'm really loving the inspiration from our muse this month Julia Stainton :) I couldn't wait to get my hands on this week's card!

I stuck closely to Julia's great layout with offset circle and popped up embellishment. 

The circle is die cut from patterned paper which I then popped up over a dark grey card base before white embossing the sentiment into the negative space. I covered the two hearts in glossy accents and actually managed to leave them to dry fully before popping them up, offset with the edge of the circle. OK so I made three hearts and stuck my finger into the gloss too soon on one and then I left the remaining two to dry fully LOL!

I hope you can join us this week. Here's the links to the rest of the girls for more inspiration:

Amy Wanford

Andrea Ewen

Christina MacLaren

Clare Buswell

Debby Hughes - me!

Iwona Palamountain (Chupa):Owner

Jean Martin

Maureen Plut

Teneale Williams

Teresa Kline

and our guest for October Jeanne Jachna

Supplies: Stamps - Papertrey Ink we go together; Inks - Versamark; Card - Papertrey Ink smoky shadow, pure poppy; Paper - Teresa Collins tell your story; Dies - Lil' Inker Designs hearts, Spellbinders circles; Embossing Powder - Hero Arts white; Glossy Accents

wish big

Lil' Inker Designs are pairing up with Runway Inspired Challenge this week and I just couldn't resist playing along! Here's the inspiration:

The red and cream stripes and the grey catwalk caught my eye :) I made this little gift bag:

The grey of the catwalk was represented by the large die from Flags & Tags. Then I adhered cream and red strips of card to some scrap card and die cut a balloon. A second balloon was cut from red card. The balloon strings wrap around the bag to keep it closed :) Finally the stitched sentiment flag was perfect to wrap around one of the strings for the sentiment from Flags & Tags.

Supplies: Stamps - Lil' Inker Designs flags & tags, Stampin' Up woodgrain; Inks - Versacolor cement, Versafine smoky gray; Card - Papertrey Ink vintage cream, soft stone, Stampin' Up poppy parade; Dies - Lil' Inker Designs balloons, flags & tags, stitched sentiment flag, Clear & Simple Stamps party favor 3; Ribbon - Stampin' Up real red; Twine

tsg177 sticking your neck out

At There She Goes it's time for TSG Again week where we take a second look at some of the previously released sets :) On the agenda are Hauntingly Delightful, Home Sweet Home Halloween Additions and You're a Hoot :)

Torico's Hauntingly Delightful set is one of my all time favourites! I pulled out the vampire and then paired him with a sentiment from Zoo-pendous - the combination just cracks me up hehe!

This card just happens to fit with this weeks challenge theme which is to make a card or project for fall or halloween :)

Well that's me for today - we are well in the thick of a week off school. I love having time with my three but it doesn't leave much time for crafting or blogging LOL!

Supplies: Stamps - There She Goes hauntingly delightful, zoo-pendous; Inks - Memento tuxedo black, Versafine onyx black, Distress Ink dusty concord; Card - Papertrey Ink true black; Paper - My Mind's Eye winter wonderland; Dies - Memory Box woodland branch, Spellbinders circles; Markers; Glossy Accents; Black enamel accent

with gratitude

Until now I hadn't had chance to break out the Signature Christmas set from Clearly Besotted Stamps and wanted to rectify that as it is a super CAS set. When I looked at the stamps it occurred to me that the wreaths in the set can be used at any time of year and, with inspiration from this wonderful card, I created a CAS autumn wreath with sentiment from the Butterfly Wishes set :)

Hope you're having a fabulous weekend :)

Supplies: Stamps - Clearly Besotted Stamps signature christmas, butterfly wishes; Inks - Versacolor cement; Card - Neenah solar white; Ribbon - American Crafts; Twine - Stampin' Up; Stampin' Up adhesive rhinestones; Markers

cas-ual fridays challenge 74

Hello!! It's Friday which means it's time for this weeks CAS-ual Fridays challenge and this week we want you to put your ⎨heart⎬ into it! Yep this week include a heart(s) on your project and appropriately our sponsor this week is i ⎨heart⎬ papers!

I went with a strong coloured card base (just love this colour!) and a simple paper strip to ground the popped up heart with twine bow :)

Oh and I don't know if you've noticed a new CAS-ual Friday graphic on my sidebar? I know a lot of people get their blog post through Google Reader and the like so here it is. Just to get you thinking LOL! My lips are sealed!

I'm keeping things short and sweet for the next week as we enjoy the October week break from school :) I hope you can join us at CAS-ual Fridays this week. Here's more inspiration from the rest of the team:

Michele Gross - The Boss 
Christina MacLaren 
Dana Seymour 
Debby Hughes - that's me! 
Gayatri Murani 
Jenny Mullens 
Julie Day 
Karolyn Loncon 
Kimberley Lane 
Laurie Willison 
Lorena Canto 
Lynn Mangan 
Piali Biswas
Virginia Lu

Not forgetting the facebook team who will be posting to facebook and their blogs during the week:

Angie Tieman 
Deb Wabbe 
Lisa Addesa 
Stephanie Washburn 
Suzanne Dahlberg 

Supplies: Stamps - Clear & Simple Stamps all occasions; Inks - Versamark; Card - Stampin' Up summer starfruit; Paper - My Mind's Eye the sweetest thing bluebell; Die - Papertrey Ink heart-2-heart #3; Twine - Papertrey Ink

tsg sneak peeks day 3

We have been begging for it, and finally, Torico gave us what we wanted…our very own NINJA set!! From colds to birthdays, this set is sure to kick whatever you need a card for’s butt!! Just stand back, he’s got this…

Ninja Skillz is a 6x8 set that includes a total of 26 stamps and will sell for $24.00.

Ninja's? Seriously Torico is killing us with this set! Just look how cute this guy is! I really enjoyed colouring him in and then as I was flicking through my patterned papers I found this perfect one from American Crafts shoreline paper pad. It reminds me of the sort of background "pow" effects from children's cartoons!

Here's a closer look at this little guy.

Would you like to win the new Ninja Skillz stamp set? Here is what you need to do - visit the Trendsetter’s blogs that are participating in each of the blog hop challenges and comment on their creations as you go. One of the Trendsetter’s blogs (from each hop day) will be randomly chosen as the ‘it’ blog and a winner will be picked using a random number generator from the comments left on that Trendsetter’s Blog Hop Challenge post. 

You will not know which blog has been chosen so the more you comment on the better your chances are of winning new stamps! The Blog Hop Challenges will be open until 5 PM Eastern Time Saturday, October 13th with the winner being announced during the release party chat.

Supplies: Stamps - There She Goes ninja skills; Card - Stampin' Up - basic gray; Paper - American Crafts shoreline; Markers

case study challenge 112

Wow, is it time for another challenge from CASE Study already? We are flying towards the October holiday from school with the children breaking up for a week tomorrow. Surely we only just went back to school from the summer holidays didn't we?! To keep us inspired for the next week we have this amazing card from Julia.

I mean seriously WOW! I was stunned by the colours, dimension and layout but seriously the use of a tape measure is genius! I mainly stuck to the layout for my inspiration; keeping the main focal point top left and transferred the tape measure into some washi tape strips from Freckled Fawn - our sponsors this month :)

I hope you can join us this week. Here's the links to the rest of the girls for more inspiration:

Amy Wanford

Andrea Ewen

Christina MacLaren

Clare Buswell

Debby Hughes - me!

Iwona Palamountain (Chupa):Owner

Jean Martin

Maureen Plut

Teneale Williams

Teresa Kline

and our guest for October Jeanne Jachna

Supplies: Stamps - Hero Arts antique engravings, Papertrey Ink hello sunshine; Inks - Versafine onyx black, smoky gray; Card - Papertrey Ink soft stone; Paper - Teresa Collins tell your story; Dies - Memory Box woven circle, Lil' Inker Designs flags & tags; Washi Tape - Freckled Fawn foreign newspaper