Flowering Fields Stamps and Wildflower Fields Papers

Who doesn't love a bargain?  I got the following papers and stamps for free from the Stampin' Up Sale-a-bration promotion.  Spend over £45 from any of the current catalogues, or even the clearance rack, and get an item for free. And there is no difference in the quality or quantity either - still the fabulous quality that I love about Stampin' Up!

Well I need a lovely birthday card for my big sister so I got to task with these goodies and some coordinating products and came up with this:

Blackberry bliss and mossy meadow are my two favourite colour combinations at the moment!  So pretty.

I also made a gift bag with the lovely matching papers:

Hope you like them!

Helen x

Product List

Flowering Fields Clear-Mount Stamp Set

[141303]

Wildflower Fields Designer Series Paper

[141022]

2014-2016 In Color 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock And Classic Ink Pads Kit

[133673]

2014-2016 In Color Stampin' Write Markers

[133654]

Gold Metallic Thread

[138401]

Window Word Punch

[119857]

Whisper White A4 Thick Cardstock

[140490]

Itty Bitty Accents Punch Pack

[133787]

Rhinestone Basic Jewels Embellishments

[119246]

Flowering Fields

I think I have a new favourtite stamp set (actually nothing will beat the Wetlands set but this is pretty close). And this is the card I made for my lovely customers:

It is called Flowering Fields and has a butterfly as well as the flowers.  I like the simplicity of the design and my mind is buzzing with ideas for other projects which is always a good sign!  For some I used SU markers to stamp the different colours (the blue flower).  For others I stamped in green and then used the blender pen to pick up colours from the ink pads to fill in the flowers. But pencils or ordinary colouring pens would work just fine!

This is another of the free sets if you spend over £45 on SU products until March. Even better... :-)

Hope you love it as much as I do.

Helen x

Built for Free Using: My Stampin Blog

Happy Blooming Birthday

I'm loving the big blooms stamps at the moment!  How's this for a pretty birthday card?

I think it is a rhododendron, which I love. Reminds me of the ones we had in our garden as a kid (although I think we spent more time making dens underneath them than admiring the pretty flowers!). Coloured with inks and blender pens which gives such a delicate effect. I'm seriously into the Sahara Sand card I used for the base of the card. A really lovely base card which goes really well with the purples.

This was sent off to Nicky my 'upline' in Stampin Up who got me started on my Stampin Up journey and answered all of my many questions so patiently! Hope she likes it and I hope you like it too :-)

Helen x

Built for Free Using: My Stampin Blog

Beautiful cards for sad occasions

I definitely don't like the reasons why we have to send sympathy cards, but I know that in time it is so good to know someone was thinking of you. This is one I made with the hostess set from the previous catalogue, 'bloom with hope'. Such a lovely and versitile set that I won't be retiring anytime soon.

Such pretty colours too - Image stamped in perfect plum and coloured with Wisteria Wonder.

Love the flower image and the effects you can get with ink and blender pens.

Helen x

Gift bag and a seal of approval from Thomas

Who doesn't love a posh little bag as much as the presents inside?  Well I do! So when a friend requests 'no presents' at their birthday then it is really hard to obey orders. So I decided a small bag of thorntons and a hand cream didn't really count as a present and wanted to make it look a bit special. So how about this:

I was using up some free goodies from Stampin Up from the sale-a-bration event so that even more counts as 'no presents' :-). It was quite a tall bag, using a full sheet of 12x12 paper, with a simple ribbon tie and tag:

The beauty of the paper is that it also has a snazzy inside:

And one of my little friends had to come and give his seal of approval. Thanks Thomas x

Hope you like it as much as Thomas.


Helen x

Built for Free Using: My Stampin Blog

Swallowtail

I'm going to let this card and stamp just speak for itself.  The stamp is just stylishly stunning, and really quite huge!  Hence why I've barefly fit half of it on an A6 card.  And I didn't even stick a sentiment on it as I didn't want to distract from the beautiful image. But I still love it as it is...

Hope you like it too!

Helen x

Built for Free Using: My Stampin Blog

A little chocolate treat!

So how's this for a tiny little treat:

I've used the Butterfly Basics set again to tie in with the cards I've made - see here and here.  I get the little chocolate bars from Aldi - 5 in a pack for £1.25 and they have loads of different kinds. And it is really good chocolate.  What's not to love!

I'm thinking of having sotruemething like them as little thank-yous for my customers (just a few that I'm hugely grateful for - early days and no card classes yet so not a surprise yet really!  Need to be patient!).

Ooo I'm getting a chocolate craving now...  Until next time,

Helen x

Built for Free Using: My Stampin Blog

Sheltering Tree

Oh my, how much do I love this stamp set! It is from the spring/summer catalogue but I'm really pleased to share it's not going anywhere (hint hint look out for the new annual catalogue next month!).

The sentiments are just perfect and the tree fits right in with my nature obsession. This past month I've been minding my 2.5 year old nephew on and off and I'm pleased to say he's definitely inherited the love of nature. We've spent many an mindful minute listening to the leaves rustling, guessing which birds are singing or just admiring the fields of golden rape on our car rides! My mindfulness tutor will be pleased!

Anyway I've just whipped up this beauty using crumb cake, pink pirouette and wild wasabi colour combos and I think it is so pretty. It's all ready for when one of my fantastic friends is there for me when I really need them. I hate relying on people but having two pretty awful medical issues means I often have to, and their friendships and support really are a sheltering tree.

I hope you like it as much as I do!

Helen x

Built for Free Using: My Stampin Blog

Lotus Blossom Thinking of You Card

Today I'm going to show the card I made for a very lovely friend who lost her mum last year and this was going to be the first Mother's Day without her.  I just wanted her to know she wasn't forgotten. I'd seen lots of pictures of the Stampin' Up! Lotus Blossom stamps which come free with orders over £45 this month as part of their Sale-A-Bration and knew I'd like the stamps but I now really, really like them. So here is the card:

It is a very simple white on white card to show off the simplicity and beauty of the image.  With this set you get three stamps that layer up to get the depth to the image and I really enjoyed using it. It's a really useful stamp set with some nice sentiment stamps too.  I'm sure I'm going to be using it lots.  It's worth thinking if you need any products from the current catalogues to get it free with orders over £45. I love a good bargain!

Hope you like the card too!

Helen x

Products used:

Built for Free Using: My Stampin Blog

An Irish Blessing

As I've mentioned in a previous post, I love this saying.  Living in Oxford means that a lot of people come here for a short time and then move away, and a good friend of mine was leaving this weekend for Scotland. I wanted an understated but stylish card suitable for a man so the challenge was on. Having been ill for a few months, which has kept me out of the craft room, I was dying to get my fingers all inky again!

Kraft cards couldn't be better for me as they fit well with my nature themes, and appropriately this card has turned out quite autumnal.  The background is stamped with a stampin' up set. I loved the transparency of the skeleton leaves, as well as the 'splodge' stamp which made it look like water drops had splattered on the surface. I used distress inks in walnut stain, vintage photo, and bundled sage.  Here's a little close up, along with buttons (bargain pack from The Works!) which are the perfect non-blingy embelishment for the guys.

The main image has been built up using Claritystamp  products, and techniques demonstrated by the wonderful Barbara Gray.

I purposely kept the background quite stark so the words would be the part to draw the eye. As a first foray into the inky world for some time, and being in a bit of a rush, I was quite happy with how this turned out. Wouldn't mind having a play with the stamps again to see how I could improve things. So you never know I might have a new post up again soon.

Helen x

Boy oh boy

Why is it so hard to make cards for men?  For me I really want to make something that is special, and is appreciated, but sometimes they just miss a bit of the zing you can put into girl cards.  I've always been a bit of a sucker for pink and frills (just ask my family about the pink dress!).  So most of the male cards I've made or you see in the shops just seem a bit bland.  But then along came kraft, buttons and bakers twine, and for some reason I'm liking the boy cards again.  So here's one I made earlier:

This uses two pieces of 6x6 Kraft card, cropodile-punched down the edge and threaded with twine. The trees are Clarity Stamps, which I just love.  I actually stamped this ages ago but was never inspired enough to know how to showcase it until now.

Pretty aren't they, in a very masculine sort of way of course!  I tried putting a sentiment on it but couldn't get it in the right place and in the end decided it looked better without for a change. Well once finished it needed the male focus group to approve or not. Thankfully Thomas decided to show his approval :-)

Hope you like it. You never know there may be more boy cards appearing here in the future now.

Helen x

More Everyday Cards

My crafting bug has been running on overdrive recently.  Like the previous post I've been trying to use up some prepared toppers.  Here are a few of the cards I have scrambled together. Always useful for the emergency box when I forget a birthday or need a 'thinking of you' kind of card!

Notice any recurring themes?  Green and pink perhaps, and always a bit nature inspired? At least it looks like I'm developing a signature style! Like Karen's blog is called Stamping in Pink maybe I should have been 'nature crafting with green and pink' - not that catchy though... Keep on the lookout for some crochet creations that might be appearing here soon as well. Yes there is another new craft creeping into my obsessions :-)


Let me know which card you like best if you have a moment. Love the comments!

Helen x

Seaside cards for the men using Clarity Stamps and ProMarkers

I know it is always a bit difficult making cards for men. Since I've invested in some Clarity seaside and lighthouse stamps the cards I've been making have seemed to go down pretty well! I've also been developing my promarker style and love using them for moody backgrounds, landscapes and seas and have really enjoyed using them in a bit of a different way to what we normally see on crafty cards.  Some other examples can be found here and here. To me they are just another medium to exercise my love of colour blending to achieve depth and atmosphere.  Let me know what you think - would love to hear your comments...

Anyway, here's the first - a 60th birthday card for a friend who loves messing about on boats!

Decorated with a bit of faux suede cord tied in a reef knot (can you tell I was a girl guide!) and a little punched and stamped 60.

Close up of the colouring. Having just got back from Anglesey, the sky and sea are pretty accurate - not exactly Mediterranean blue in this climate!

The second card is for my cousin who moved to Anglesey last year and being a rocky island there are plenty of lighthouses around the coast.  So Barbara's lighthouse stamp was perfect!  I wanted to achieve a bit of the stormy atmosphere around the lighthouse that we often get there so lots of dark blues and greys.

There is a lighthouse just of Penmon Point (one of my favourite places on this enchanted island) which really inspired me - wonder if Barbara has been there too?!

Not sure if he's got it yet but hope he likes it!

Would to hear what you think of these cards. I know I don't have many followers but I do appreciate everyone who takes time to to look at my little creations.

Helen x

Dandelion Fairy

Anyone who has visited my garden knows that I am quite a fan of the humble dandelion (well that is my excuse as to why there are so many in the lawn!).  It is a cheery little plant though and the buzzy bees seem to like them, and they are friends with my favourite little daisies :-).  So I just had to get the Dandelion Fairy stamps from Clarity Stamps, and I had the excuse to make this card for my lovely friend Karen on her birthday. I've been dying to post the photos but it's taken ages for us to meet up... Anyway, here it is:

The stamped images are created with a Versamark inkpad and dusted with Cosmic Shimmer powder - I tried about 3 different types of powders, embossing etc until I got the detail I wanted. Here are a couple of close ups:

Karen being a bit of a perfectionist and finishing off her cards so well, she needed a matching insert as well!

Anyway, so glad we got to meet up, do crafty shopping, compare notes on new purchases, and of course have coffee and cake! Just what we both needed I think (best not mention the dress that forced me to buy it in Laura Ashley though - naughty dress)...

Bye for now,

Helen x