Artisan Love

So, another Saturday, another wedding anniversary card.  Today's was made for my husband's twin brother and his wife.

I've had the Artisan Embellishment Kit in my craft room for some time so thought this was the perfect opportunity to use it.  The kit is great as it has so many accessories you can mix and match with any project.  It's only available until 2 June too *sad face*

This isn't a typical anniversary, agreed, but I quite like it's understated elegance, which is quite suiting of the couple in question.

I hope they like it.  I enjoyed making it.

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Amazingly Amazing Gorgeous Grunge

The inspiration for this card came from a dress that Good Morning Britain presenter, Susanna Reid wore one day.  Splashes of daffodil yellow mixed with grey and black on a white backdrop, it immediately made me grab by Gorgeous Grunge stamp set!

The end result of the stamping reminds me of those paintings you'd do at school with straws and running paint.  A sort of messy, haphazard splattering all over the page.

For the sentiment, I had to use my beloved Painted Petals set as I love the font.  I then added the black elegant butterfly to silhouette against the coloured backdrop.

You can, of course, choose any colour combination, it doesn't have to be based on a television presenter's dress!

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Sneak Peek with a Cherry on Top

No Try it Tuesday today.  Instead, I am here to celebrate that, a week today, Stampin' Up!'s new annual catalogue will be launched *happy dance*.

As an Independent Demonstrator, I've been lucky enough to receive the catalogue early as well as purchase some items before they go live (oh, the perks of joining the fun!)

As soon as I got my hands on the Cherry on Top DSP I knew it would be perfect for my little ones' birthdays.  Ok, George will not be three till mid August and Emma won't be one until the end of September, but there's nothing like pre planning!

This lovely paper stack features three of the new in colours, Watermelon Wonder, Tip Top Taupe and Cucumber Crush.  Being 6x6 size they are perfect for all sorts of projects and the patterns are just fabulous (sweeties, doughnuts, ice creams, cupcakes, what's not to love!)

Flicking through it, I knew the papers would be great for invites, table treats and thank you cards so decided to have a play and make a project incorporating the latter two.

The sweetie pot was CASE'd from a Christmas project my friend and up line, Sam (of Pootles fame) did here.  As the paper stack is the perfect size, there's no cutting involved which is a great time saver!

To match the table treat I made a 3x3 thank you card.  Doing them this size, you can get 4 DSP layers out of 1 sheet.  You could even design the invitations the same.  The added sequins were bits that were left over after trimming the tie on the sweetie bag (no wastage!).

I couldn't leave Emma out so here is the one I designed with her in mind.  She doesn't understand sweets, or solid food much for that matter.  TV controls and plastic plates are far better to chew on in her opinion.

So, what do you think, simple, easy to make, cost effective...though it may make you crave whatever is on the paper you are using afterwards!

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A Sandy Sahara Anniversary

So as we head into peak wedding season, we inevitably head into a wave of back to back wedding anniversaries too.

Today's project was made for my husband's eldest sister and brother in law who celebrate theirs today.  There's something about the Something Borrowed DSP mixed with Sahara Sand that just looks screams understated elegance.

A hint of sparkle, lace trim, and look, I even managed to tie a bow with linen thread.  Ok, it took a few attempts with my shaky hands, but it looks sort of like a bow right?

I guess this could even be a lovely invite to a beach wedding *starts longing for warm sunny climes and crisp blue waters*

Love this paper and such a shame it's only available until 2 June so if you like it, grab it while you can!

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A Night of Navy Birthday Bash

I often steer clear of the colour navy.  It always makes me think of school jumpers, or court shoes, just uncomfortable uniforms in general!

However, when I saw this sheet of DSP within the Birthday Bash collection, the pattern just jumped out at me.  It was so different from the other brightly coloured and gold accented sheets in the set that I had to create something with it - it posed me a challenge!

I didn't want whatever I created to turn out 'manly' so I think the petite petal punch helps soften the statement paper up.  I chose the generic sentiment for the same reason.

I guess it is one of those 'just because' cards to let someone know you're thinking of them.

After finishing it, I think I actually like navy now.  Though I won't be buying a navy jumper any time soon!

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Try it Tuesday - Painted Petals Thank You Cards

Today's project is one of those cards that can be any colour and for any occasion.

I love the versatility of the Painted Petals stamp set and it's only available until the 2 June *sad face*.

Now I'm normally a brights girl at heart, but I haven't used Cherry Cobbler for a while and thought using a regals shade might give this a bit of richness.

You could use any of the petals variations you fancy and stamp till your heart's content until you're happy with your focal layer (it almost creates your own DSP!).  I chose the large double petal stamp as I wanted to create quite a bold yet simple look.

I finished it off with the Thank You sentiment (I love the font of the sentiments in this set!) and a bit of punch layering and twine looping to finish off.

Super quick, super simple, but quite effective don't you think?

So which colour would you choose?  I'd love to hear what combinations you'd come up with!

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A Blooming Rosy Adventure

My job share colleague from my day job sadly leaves today.  Her name is Rose so it only seemed fitting to use Rose Red on her leaving card!  It's a colour that I have not used much.  I'm not even sure why as it is lovely,

Another thing I haven't used nowhere near as often as I should have is the Painted Blooms DSP.  It has such a stunning selection of papers and it's only available until 2 June *sad face*

The stamp set I used is one that was only available with hostess credits until recently.  It is now on the retired list so grab it while you can!

The layering was done using my Project Life labels and cards framelits - so versatile and not just for scrapbooking.

I hope she likes it.  I think it's cute.

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