HAPPY HEART CARDS: January 2011

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

INKSPIRATIONS COLOUR CHALLENGE #54

How's this? Two blog posts in one day! I have made a card for Makeesha's Inkspirations challenge this week, using the following colour combination:

In stark contrast to my last card, I managed to use only ONE stamp set to create this card. Stampin' Up! makes it very easy to put together a project using one set; the stamps in each set go so well together, as well as (just as I've shown) with many others! I'm on a bit of a butterfly kick at the moment, and the ones I've stamped tonight didn't escape the shimmer spritz treatment that is another of my favourites. I used the "Rock and Roll" technique to create the dual-coloured butterflies. First I inked up the butterfly stamp with my Blushing Bride stampin' pad, then I rolled the edges of the inked stamp in Early Espresso ink. Pretty, don't you think? I am loving the gorgeous Petals A Plenty embossing folder I received for Christmas, too. All in all, I'm pretty happy with this card. Apologies for the (lack of) photographic quality; I made the card on a whim tonight, and needed to photograph it tonight because, boo hoo, I have to go to work tomorrow.

Stamps: Great Friend

Card: Very Vanilla, Early Espresso

DSP: Blushing Bride Patterns Designer Series Paper

Ink: Blushing Bride, Early Espresso and Pear Pizzazz stampin' pads, Frost White Shimmer Paint (mixed with rubbing alcohol, to make a shimmer mist)

Other: Stamp-a-ma-jig, paper snips, Very Vanilla taffeta ribbon, Basic Pearls, stampin' dimensionals, Petals A Plenty embossing folder

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!!

Monday, January 24, 2011

BIRTHDAY BAKERY ... with shimmer!

In honour of my niece Jade's 15th birthday yesterday, I inked up my new Birthday Bakery stamp set, to make a pretty, girly card.

Several weeks ago I bought some Mini Mister bottles (tiny spray bottles), planning to fill them with rubbing alcohol mixed with (10 drops of) Stampin' Up!'s Frost White Shimmer Paint. My plan had not been put into action until I sat down to make this card, and I am so glad I finally got around to making up my own spritz - it's gorgeous. Anything that doesn't move is now likely to get this treatment! Can you see how I've spritzed the main Crumb Cake panel, after stamping and colouring the cakes? Stampin' Up!'s Shimmery White cardstock complements the sparkle.

I love to use faux stitching on my cards - poking holes with my fab-o Paper Piercing Tool and Mat Pack, and using a fine-tip marker to join them up to look like stitches. Ordinarily I 'stitch' in straight lines only, but was inspired by the gorgeous and talented Renee Van Stralen to incorporate a bit of cross-stitch on this card. What do you think? I love it!

Stamps: Birthday Bakery

Card: Crumb Cake, Shimmery White, Whisper White, Blushing Bride

DSP: Blushing Bride Patterns Designer Series Paper (hostess pack)

Ink: Early Espresso stampin' pad and marker, Jet Black Staz-on inkpad, white gel pen, Blushing Bride stampin' pad and marker, Melon Mambo marker, Real Red marker, Pear Pizzazz marker, Frost White Shimmer Paint (mixed with "Isocol")

Other: Whisper White Organza ribbon, Pinking Hearts Punch, Mat Pack and Paper Piercing tool, Word Window and Modern Label punches, sponge dauber, mini glue dots

Saturday, January 22, 2011

JUST ADD INK #52

I've missed my weekly dose of "Just Add Ink", I must say ...... so, it's time to get back into it! This week the girls have come up with this sketch, to use as a base for a papercraft project:

I have used a few of my new Stampin' Up! goodies to make my card. A while ago I decided I just HAD to have the Beautiful Butterflies Bigz Die ... but do you think I had actually used it?? (I'm sure I'm not alone in that regard; it's a sickness, NEEDING all these things!!) So, today was the day. I cut a butterfly out of Pear Pizzazz Patterns DSP (from the Hostess pack), inked up my Music Notes wheel in Pear Pizzazz ink, and prettied up the butterfly a bit. Sponging of the edges, and addition of some rhinestones, finished off the look I wanted. I've teamed the butterfly with some smaller, delicate ones cut out using the adorable Beautiful Wings Sizzlits Die. Smaller rhinestones add the finishing touch to those.

Here is the card I came up with, after deciding it was about time I showed some love to my Soft Suede cardstock and ink; it's been a bit neglected lately. Please ignore my dirty craft room window!

Stamps: Well Scripted, Music Notes wheel

Card: Whisper White, Soft Suede

DSP: Pear Pizzazz Patterns Designer Series Paper, from hostess pack (larger spots) and In Color paper stack (smaller spots)

Ink: Whisper White craft stampin' pad, Pear Pizzazz stampin' pad, Soft Suede stampin' pad

Other: Top Note Die, Corner rounder punch, Beautiful Butterflies Bigz Die, Beautiful Wings embosslits die, Basic Rhinestones, sponge daubers, Whisper White Organza ribbon

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/

Monday, January 17, 2011

I'M BACK!

Can you guess where I've been???

It seems like such a long time since my last blog post. Happy New Year, everyone! I hope this year is full of promise, good health, and lots of precious times spent with those you love.

Over Christmas/New Year, we went on a holiday with friends of ours - the first time we've ever travelled with friends, especially on such a big trip, but I am pleased to report that we still all love one another!

I am still returning to the 'land of the living' after a lot of flying, and picking up some rather nasty bugs on the way home, so haven't yet done anything creative. In lieu of some cards, I thought I'd share some photos from our trip (apologies to any Facebook friends who've already seen these!).

To start our holiday, we travelled to Los Angeles, and had a whirlwind 3 days to pack in a great deal of sightseeing, and of course Disneyland. Unfortunately about 100,000 others had the same idea (about visiting Disneyland), so it wasn't exactly The Happiest Place On Earth, for those of us who struggle to cope with huge crowds. Our family has been before, so we knew how to get around, which helped; I just felt sorry for our friends, seeing it for the first time. We weren't able to do a lot, other than stand in queues. Still, it was an experience! The frustration of waiting over an hour in a line, to get in to California Adventure Park (adjacent to Disneyland), was soon forgotten when Chip 'n' Dale, and their helpers, took a shine to Ethan (our 10-year-old), and chose our families to receive VIP treatment before the park opened. It was such fun to be able to walk through, no crowds - and those brave enough got to have an exclusive ride on the Tower of Terror.

From L.A., we flew on to New York, for another short stay. We arrived in the aftermath of a snow storm that had forced the closure of JFK Airport; luck was on our side, and the airport opened just when we needed it to! Three days in New York is just not long enough. Still, we loved showing our friends the sights that we knew; such a beautiful city. One of the highlights of being in New York in the festive season is the Christmas decorations. Look at the amazing exteriors of the Tommy Hilfiger and Fendi stores on Fifth Avenue:

We saw in the New Year in Times Square:

..... and then had a lovely walk from our apartment in Manhattan, to the pier, for the next leg of our big adventure. Eight people, eight suitcases (and carry-on luggage), trudging through the snow. Love this photo!

The last 10 days of our holiday were spent on a cruise to the Caribbean. This was home (albeit a rather rocky one) for that time:

Here's a shot of all 8 of us in St Thomas. There were SIX cruise ships in port that day; sheer madness.

Here's Andrew (hubby) and Ethan in Rasta mode:

.... and one last photo, showing some of the gorgeous coloured buildings that I loved in the Caribbean:

I am looking forward to establishing some new routines for 2011, and getting back into my craft room.

I'm taking part in a blog hop, with friends, this coming Saturday. We'll be sharing some creations made with products from Stampin' Up!'s Summer Mini catalogue, so please come back to visit! By then I will have HAD to make something, won't I??!!

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