Thinking Stamping

Wednesday, 10 November 2021

Around the World on Wednesday November: My Favourite Month

Welcome to the latest Inspiration Hop from Around the World on Wednesday. In case you haven't visited us before, we hop on the second Wednesday of the month, with a theme to inspire you in your craft rooms. We're 'Around the World' because the team includes people from all the markets Stampin' Up! is available in. I'm here in New Zealand then there's people from Australia, the UK, France, the Netherlands, Austria, Germany, Canada and the United States (including Alaska and Hawaii).

Each month, we have a theme. This month, it's an interesting one: Our Favourite Month. Now, there's a question! How do you pick a favourite month? Every month, just like every season, has its pleasures.

In the end, I've chosen June. My birthday is in June but that's not the whole reason why it's my favourite. You'd think that being the start of winter would make it a less favoured month but it's because it's winter that it's up there. My husband and I like to find a warm retreat from the cold of winter, so some of our best holidays have been in June. We've had tropical holidays in Fiji, Samoa, and Tahiti. We've had trips to Queensland and other parts of Australia. Once we went to Hawaii. Yet our best June holiday was to Canada and Alaska.

This challenge got me digging through the photo mountain. I decided to scrapbook one of our 'Best Of' moments and that was a helicopter trip we took from Canmore over the Gloria Glacier. Spectacular scenery, the beauty of the ice and the novelty of a helicopter trip! Marvellous!

I started by using Smoky Slate and Misty Moonlight with the triangle stencil from the Plenty of Patterns Decorative Masks. I picked both the colours and the pattern to echo the pattern of the ice in the main picture.

Tailor Made Tags were useful to tuck in with some journal details.

Mountain Air was a great set to use here. I've stamped the mountain range in Smoky Slate, Misty Moonlight and a stamped off Misty Moonlight and added some icy Wink of Stella. Some scrunched up Metallic Mesh ribbon added in some further faux iciness and helped extend the horizontal design axis.

To add texture, I embossed the Smoky Slate panel behind my husband's photo with the Bark folder.

Playful Alphabets, with a heavy coat of Wink of Stella, make up the main part of the title but the 'glacier' needed to be smaller. I used the now retired Make A Difference alphabet set for that.

Sometimes, I'm so fixated on cards, I forget how great Stampin' Up! is for scrapbooking too.

Next on the hop is the fabulous Leonie Stuart. I wonder what her favourite month is? At the bottom of the post is a blog roll you can use should you get lost or encounter a broken link.

Jan Clothier - NZ

Leonie Stuart - AU

Rochelle Laird-Smith - AU

Cheryll Miller - AU

Danielle Kassing - NL

Aurélie Fabre - FR

Emma Goddard - UK

Mikaela Titheridge - UK

Sharon Hashimoto Burkert - US

Teri West - US

Cheryl Hamilton - US

If you live in New Zealand and don't have a Stampin' Up Demonstrator, I'd love to be yours. I can help you with ideas, get you catalogues and provide you with Stampin' Up products. You can leave a message in the comments or contact me using any of the methods listed in the Contact Me tab at the top of the page. You can shop with me from anywhere in New Zealand by clicking on the SHOP NOW button in the sidebar or clicking on any of products below.

Product List

Mountain Air Photopolymer Stamp Set

[151610]

$42.00

Majestic Mountain Dies

[151608]

$76.00

Playful Alphabet Dies

[152706]

$71.00

Tailor Made Tags Dies

[155563]

$46.00

Basic White 12 X12 (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Cardstock

[159231]

$16.25

Night Of Navy A4 Card Stock

[106577]

$18.50

Card Stock A4 Smoky Slate

[131291]

$18.50

Smoky Slate Classic Stampin' Pad

[147113]

$15.75

Misty Moonlight Classic Stampin' Pad

[153118]

$15.75

Blending Brushes

[153611]

$25.25

Bark 3 D Embossing Folder

[155431]

$21.00

Plenty Of Patterns Decorative Masks

[155553]

$16.75

Metallic Mesh Ribbon

[153550]

$16.75

Flowers For Every Season Ribbon Combo Pack

[153620]

$21.00

Clear Wink Of Stella Glitter Brush

[141897]

$14.00

Merriest Moments for CI111

It's already time for a new challenge at Colour INKspiration! The crew are loving seeing the wonderful entries that are rolling in. We can't wait to see what you make of these colours, chosen by Crew Member, Nicole WIlson.

If you haven't played with us before, we are a group of Stampin' Up Demonstrators from the South Pacific. Challenges are shown and entered via our Facebook Group page. If you don't belong, and would like to, click here. Don't forget to answer the three easy questions you'll be asked when you ask to join the group.

Each challenge, Top Picks and a winner are chosen by the crew and the winner offered a chance to Guest Design with us for a future challenge. This time, we have Michele Miller joining us as Guest Designer.

If you don't have an exact challenge colour, feel free to replace it with whatever you have that's closest. Black, White, Very Vanilla, Crumb Cake, Sahara Sand and metallics are free colours, as are flesh toned Stampin' Blends.

Isn't this a beautiful, near-neutral palette? Yet even so, they suggested a Christmas card to me.

Merriest Moments is one of my three favourite Christmas sets from 2021. Although the hybrid embossing folder and dies are absolute winners, the stamps are wonderful too.

I've used Evening Evergreen and Soft Succulent with a mix of foliage stamps to lay down a background for the layered up Crumb Cake poinsettia flower. I've added some Crumb Cake splatters too.

Crumb Cake and Very Vanilla work so well with Copper Foil that I've added some of that as a free colour.

The final touch were a few Evening Evergreen jewels from the 2021-2023 In Colour Jewels pack. I love how they change colour in the light.

It's a deceptively simple card and I really like the result. 😀

Visit the Colour INKspiration site to check out the album of Crew Cards for inspiration. You can alos add your entry to the wall there.

Product List

Merriest Moments Bundle (English)

[156783]

$113.25

Crumb Cake A4 Card Stock

[121685]

$18.50

Very Vanilla A4 Card Stock

[106550]

$20.50

Copper Foil Sheets

[142020]

$10.50

Evening Evergreen Classic Stampin' Pad

[155576]

$15.75

Soft Succulent Classic Stampin' Pad

[155778]

$15.75

Crumb Cake Classic Stampin' Pad

[147116]

$15.75

2021–2023 In Color Jewels

[155571]

$14.75

Saturday, 30 October 2021

Friends are Like Seashells for CAS Colours and Sketches 443

I've always enjoyed CAS Colours and Sketches as a challenge, with the alternation of colour and sketch challenges, all with a clean-and-simple overtone. As I was writing the title, I had a thought back to entering when there were under 100 challenges and then playing along for Challenge 100! This challenge is an interesting one too.

It's been a while since I used Friends are Like Seashells but it's one of my favourites from the annual catalogue.

I stamped the sand dollar, then masked it and stamped in the sea weed and sand splats. I should have thought about it more because I had to add the scallop by stamping it and then fussy cutting it. It worked in my favour in the end because the cut shape adds a smidgeon of depth to the cluster. 😀

Originally, I stamped and die cut the birthday sentiment from Friends are Like Seashells, "Happy Birthday to my Beautiful Friend" but then it occurred to me that a less cursive, less sentimental sentiment would turn this card into a masculine-friendly card. So I changed it to the greeting you see from Handsomely Suited and I'm happy with the result.

The final design dilemma was whether or not to add the Opal Rounds but I so love the way they reflect the light ,and look like bubbles, that I just couldn't resist them.

Update: Delighted to be chosen a Weekly Winner at CAS Colours and Sketches.

Product List

Friends Are Like Seashells Bundle

[156205]

$113.25

Handsomely Suited Cling Stamp Set

[154444]

$44.00

Misty Moonlight A4 Cardstock

[153086]

$18.50

Basic White A4 Cardstock

[159228]

$20.50

Basic Gray Classic Stampin' Pad

[149165]

$15.75

Just Jade Classic Stampin' Pad

[153115]

$15.75

Misty Moonlight Stampin' Blends Combo Pack

[153108]

$19.00

Crumb Cake Stampin' Blends Combo Pack

[154882]

$19.00

Smoky Slate Stampin' Blends Combo Pack

[154904]

$19.00

Stitched Rectangles Dies

[151820]

$74.00

Opal Rounds

[154289]

$15.75

Stampin' Dimensionals

[104430]

$7.25

Friday, 29 October 2021

Merriest Moments for AYSI 262

I can't believe that it's time for a new challenge at As You See It! This time up it's our 'Fill in the Blank' Challenge. What one thing sums up Christmas for you?

Tricky question that one! In the end, for me Christmas is about getting together with family and spending some relaxed time with them all. Sometimes, it's people you haven't seen in a while. Sometimes it's the ones you see all the time. Mostly, you just don't get to see everyone all at once very often. I love the shared meals, the games, swimming in the pool, lazing by the barbecue and the chance to talk and laugh together.

The Merriest Moments bundle has just the sentiment for that feeling: 'together is the merriest place to be.'

This set, with its hybrid embossing folder, makes creating really striking cards incredibly easy - and quick. Using opulent ingredients, such as specialty gold or silver foil or gold shimmer vellum, adds an extra wow factor.

To make this card is very easy. Here's the steps:

1. Emboss a piece of Basic White with the Merriest Frames Hybrid embossing folder.

2. Adhere this to the front of a Thick Basic White card base.

3. Use the die shown in the first photograph on the foil or vellum of your choice. This card uses standard gold foil.

4. Take that die cut and fit it back into the embossing folder and run it through the machine. This gives the die cut all the gorgeous detailing.

5. Layer this onto the Basic White card front.

6. Stamp the sentiment in Versamark and gold heat emboss it.

7. Die cut the sentiment using the stitched rectangle die from the set.

8. Adhere the sentiment on dimensionals.

9. Add embellishments. I've used Gilded Gems.

So easy, you could make multiple of this card really quickly.

Here's a variation made using some of the almost-blue-Specialty Silver Foil, a different sentiment, rhinestones and Night of Navy ink (although Silver embossing works too).

What's your one-word summary of Christmas? You can see what the rest of the team have done and link up your entry at the As You See It Challenge site.

Product List

Merriest Moments Bundle (English)

[156783]

$113.25