...one...

I cannot believe how quickly time is passing by these days. We celebrated a friend's little boy's 1st birthday today, and when we were chatting realised we haven't caught up since before Christmas! All our children are growing and changing at a phenomenal rate, and before I know it my own baby girl will be turning 1.... and my big girl will be 6...

For the birthday boy's card, I used the fabulous colour challenge from Color Throwdown:

I realised I haven't been stamping much on my cards of late (loving embossing and die cuts!), so thought I'd challenge to include a bit more stamping. It wasn't much, but at least it's more than a greeting :)

The little man of the moment had a great party, his Mum loved the card and both my girls were alseep within 10 mins of leaving the party, so I'd class that as a fabulous day!


Thanks for visiting and enjoy the rest of your weekend.

It's a Boy Baby Shower

Hello again!

I must apologise for being MIA for so long. We went away for a well earned family break and it has taken me longer than anticipated to a) recover from it and b) find my mojo again and be inspired to play. I am slowly getting there and have made a few bits and pieces over the last few weeks, but hopefully I will be back to posting at least once a week very soon.

So, after such a long hiatus, today's creation is quite simple for a friend's baby shower. After 2 girls she has found out she is having a boy and is understandably very excited. I couldn't go past this week Colour Throwdown challenge for colour inspiration, and the current Sketch 'n' Color sketch was just perfect for the 'boy':

I am loving Marina Mist - it's such a great colour and due to my lack of creating, this is the first time I have used it. I can assure you, you're likely to be seeing A LOT more of it in the future!!

I started with a base of Marina Mist and attached on top a background of Summer Picnic DSP (retired) which had been pierced around the edge and layered on a thin base of Whisper White.

'Baby' from All Year Cheer II (retired) was stamped in Marina Mist, as well as the 'b' and 'y' from Big Deal Alphabet (retired). The 'o' was created using the 1 3/4" and 1 1/4" circle punches and finshed off with a cute little monkey from Fox & Friends stamped in Chocolate Chip. The 'o' and the monkey were popped up with dimensionals.

I know this is quite basic, but I hope this is not a disappointing return :)

I will be back in the next day or two - promise!

Thanks for visiting!

Stamps: All Year Cheer II (retired), Big Deal Alphabet (retired), Fox & Friends

Card: Marina Mist, Whisper White, Summer Picnic DSP (retired)

Ink: Marina Mist, Chocolate Chip

Other: 1 3/4" Circle Punch, 1 1/4" Circle Punch, Paper Piercer

Celebrating Color Throwdown's 100th!!

How awesome is that - 100 challenges! I haven't been playing along with Color Throwdown since the beginning (I think they were in the 30's when I discovered them) but I have played along a few times, and the colour combos are always great. To celebrate the 100th Challenge, there are heaps of wonderful prizes up for grabs and STACKS of awesome inspiration.... And a doozy of a colour challenge....

I think it's the pink and red together that gets me.....

I pulled out my (new) two step bird punch for this one (isn't he so cute!), and used a scallop circle to help me with the effect of the clouds in the background.

Congratulations girls on 100 challenges - I know I'll be sticking with you for the next 100!!

Stamps: Heard from the Heart (Autumn-Winter Mini)

Card: Baja Breeze, Certainly Celery, Whisper White

DSP: Certainly Celery Prints (retired), Urban Garden, Regal Rose Patterns, Ski Slope (retired)

Ink: Baja Breeze

Other: Extra Large Two Step Bird Punch (Autumn-Winter Mini), Scallop Circle Punch, White Gel Pen

A Little Bird Told Me.....

Since this years IB&C came out, I've been looking Cheep Talk and a little while ago I finally bought it, but today is the first time it's seen my ink pads!! It's been a little while since I've played with Color Throwdown and I LOVE these colours!!

I have no less than 12 birthdays in July, so this will take care of one!! Better get cracking on the others too now.....

Thanks for visiting!

Stamps: Cheep Talk, A Little Birthday Cheer

Card: Night of Navy, Certainly Celery, Whisper White

DSP: Urban Garden, Pink Flamingo, Certainly Celery Prints (retired)

Ink: Certainly Celery, Cameo Coral, Night of Navy

Punches: Scallop Circle, 1 3/4" Circle

Other: Paper Piercer

Spots and more Spots!

Paul announced Friday night we were heading out for drinks this weekend for a his work colleague's birthday, so I thought I should put together a card for her. She's young and very sporty and funky, so flowers and 'super-girly' were out of the question. The bold funky colours of this weeks Colour Throwdown and the groovy sketch over at Mojo Monday were just what I needed to work with, so I made a card and a wine tag to dress up the bottle a touch.

Here's a closer pic of the card. As there are SO many spots, I have left the brads out of the sketch - they would have been lost!!

We had a lovely afternoon and Luana fell asleep virtually as soon as we walked in the door!

Thanks for visiting.

Stamps: Seeing Spots, Lots of Thoughts (retired)

Card: Tempting Turquoise, Rose Red, Kiwi Kiss, Whisper White

DSP: Pink Flamingo, Good Morning Sunshine, Bella Rose

Ink: Tempting Turquoise, Rose Red

Other: Oval Punch, 1 1/4" Square Punch, Corner Rounder, 1 3/8" Circle Punch

More Mother's Day

I really wanted to make a Mother's Day card for Mum that featured green, as it's her favourite colour. My favourite colour is purple (in case you hadn't realised - I think Rich Razzleberry is my new favourite), so this weeks Colour Throwdown was perfect - it has both!! Teamed with yet another gorgeous sketch from Taylored Expressions, I am stoked with the result.

I played with putting brads in the centre of the flowers, but ended up leaving them off as it looked a bit 'heavy'. With the edging around the sentiment, I just snipped into the valleys of the eyelet border so it would fold a bit and guided it around the circle. I'm happy with the result!

Thank you ladies for helping me make such a special card for such a special woman.

Thanks for visiting!

Stamps: Vintage Vogue (Autumn Winter Mini), All Year Cheer II (retired)

Card: Old Olive, Rich Razzleberry, Pale Plum, Whisper White

DSP: Cottage Garden (Autumn Winter Mini)

Ink: Old Olive, Rich Razzleberry, Barely Banana, Pale Plum

Other: Eyelet Border Punch, Corner Rounder Punch (non-SU), Circle Scissors Plus

A Couple of Colour Throwdown Cards

I didn't start out to make two cards for this weeks Colour Throwdown Challenge, but while I was on a role, I kept with it. I went with Sage Shadow, Really Rust and Bravo Burgandy.

This first one was made for Paul's Pop, so it also fills the requirements for Stampin' Royalty this week of a masculine card :) My initial thoughts were to pull out my Outlaw DSP, but I used that for his card last year.... So, I then thought about using 'white space' and just putting a smaller panel in the top half of the card with a birthday cake, but I couldn't find one to suit. Then I remembered seeing Pick-a-Petal used as a candle on a few blogs last year, so thought that could work (as he would have A LOT of candles on his cake), especially paired with the greeting from the SAB set Whimsical Words. I keep thinking the card needs something more, so I popped up the flame, but I'm still not quite sure... Paul keeps telling me it's perfect for Pop as he's a basic, simple man who doesn't like fuss, so here it is. Don't you love supportive husbands?!

I also wanted to make a little thank you for a colleague of mine who recently went to Sydney and brought me back some gorgeous tea from T2. She's an absolute gem!! (We don't have many shops here, so everyone is really cool with picking up bits and pieces when we visit big cities - another colleague is hitting Kikki K for me this coming weekend. I don't do internet shopping as it would be WAY too dangerous for my credit card). Like It a Latte (retired) was the obvious choice, and this was kept SUPER simple. I think the sponging just adds the right finishing touch. I suppose you could almost say this could pass for a masculine card too.... I'll let the Stampin' Royalty Goddesses decide....

Many Candles Card

Stamps: Pick-a-Petal, Whimiscal Words (SAB), Polka Dots & Paisley (retired)

Card: Bravo Burgandy, Sage Shadow, Very Vanilla

Ink: Bravo Burgandy, Really Rust

Other: Paper Piercer, Stampin' Write Journaler

Because Nice Matters Love Note

Stamps: Like It a Latte (retired), Sweet Little Sayings (Level 1 Hostess)

Card: Bravo Burgandy, Sage Shadow, Very Vanilla

Ink: Bravo Burgandy, Sage Shadow, Really Rust

Sale-A-Bration Workshop

Yesterday I had a great group of girls around for a Sale-A-Bration workshop. We made three projects, each one featuring a Sale-A-Bration set, and two of the projects using products from the current Summer Mini.

As this was the first time I had inked up any of my new SAB sets, these projects qualify for the current ABC Challenge - N is for New!!

For the card project, we made an easel card where I had used Colour Throwdown 79 for inspiration. I actually made two with different base card (as I didn't have enough Riding Hood Red for everyone... oops). Even though the Blush Blossom was my back up, I think I actually like that one better than the tone-on-tone one.... The technique demonstrated with this project (apart from the funky card) was paper piecing.

For the 3D project, we whipped up these very cute and very easy PostIt Note Holders. I am officially in LOVE with the Kaleidoscope DSP from the Summer Mini. It is just divine!!! I was working on a bit of an eclectic feel with this project - funky DSP and colours with more traditional stamps from Vintage Labels (or should I say Vintage stamps...)

Our third project was using the super cute Scallop Notes from the Summer Mini together with Tall Tales DSP and Animal Stories stamp set - such a great combo!! The greeting is from the oh-so-versatile SAB set Whimsical Words. I ran with the retro feel of the DSP and placed my little owl off centre. I also ADORE the buttons in the Summer Mini so had to include one from Playground on this card. For that little something extra on the card, the DSP on the inside of the card was punched with the scallop edge punch. I love the look of lined envelopes too and little cards with little envelopes are just perfect to demonstrate that on.

We had a lovely afternoon creating and chatting - thanks for joining me girls, we'll do it again soon!!

Happy Birthday Easel Card

Stamps: Happy Moments (SAB)

Card: Riding Hood Red, Blush Blossom, Sage Shadow, Very Vanilla

DSP: Candy Lane

Ink: Sage Shadow, Riding Hood Red

Other: Scallop Edge Punch, Dress Ups Ribbon

For You PostIt Note Holder

Stamps: Vintage Labels (SAB)

Card: Pink Passion

DSP: Kaleidoscope (Summer Mini)

Ink: Pixie Pink, Tempting Turquoise

Other: Scallop Circle Punch, Tempting Turquoise Grosgrain Ribbon

Too Kind Scallop Note & Lined Envelope

Stamps: Whimsical Words (SAB), Animal Stories (Summer Mini)

Card: Very Vanilla, Rose Red, Old Olive

DSP: Tall Tales (Summer Mini)

Ink: Brilliant Blue, Rose Red

Punches: Scallop Edge, 1 1/4" Circle, 1 3/8" Circle, 1 1/4" Square, 1 3/8" Square

Other: Scallop Notes (Summer Mini), Playground Buttons (Summer Mini)

An Apple a Day....

Last week we were flat out at work promoting Australia's Healthy Weight Week - plus there was the Australia Day public holiday in there to make the week shorter... As part of our promotion, a few Come and Try group fitness sessions were organised at the local gym, so I put my hand up to make the thank you cards for the instructors who generously volunteered their time to show us their preferred fitness classes: Body Step, RPM and Body Pump. I braved all 3 and didn't pull up too sore!!! Maybe I'm fitter than I thought...

I thought Tart & Tangy coupled with Colour Throwdown 77 would do the trick, as what says 'dietitian' more than fruit? These colours together are just so gorgeous too!

Simple, sweet and straight to the point. I also popped a layer of Whisper White edged in Certainly Celery ink and stamped with the apple inside each card to make it easier to write on.

Part of Australia's Healthy Weight Week is the 10 week challenge, aimed to assist people with making changes to their lifestyle and to 'eat better, feel better, move more NOW'. If you would like more information, have a look at http://www.healthyweightweek.com.au/. Take the 10 Week Challenge and make those New Year weight loss/healthy lifestyle resolutions come true!!!

Stamps: Tart & Tangy, Trendy Trees

Card: Elegant Eggplant, Baja Breeze, Whisper White

DSP: Certainly Celery Prints (retired)

Ink: Certainly Celery, Elegant Eggplant

Punches: scallop circle, 1 3/8" circle, 1 1/4" circle

Other: Certainly Celery grosgrain ribbon (from Ribbon Bundle)

Two Reasons to Smile

I have had a FANTASTIC time playing last night and this afternoon, and feel like I have achieved so much - don't you love it when that happens?! So, this is my first of 3 posts today (yes, was able to play with a lot of challenges!).

First up is the 6"x6" calendar page for Mum and Dad's calendar (yes, this is the first page I've done, and yes I know it's over half way through January). I thought the latest Colour Throwdown colours worked well with this gorgeous photo of Luana holding her cousin 'baby Max' (the first time she held him all on her own!!).

I have substituted Pixie Pink for Melon Mambo and I can't remember if non-card projects qualify, so my apologies if they don't.

I kept the page VERY simple. I kept thinking I need to add something, but I think it works as it is. The greeting hasn't come up well in the photo, but it's from the retired set Reason to Smile. I inked it in Old Olive first, then took the ink off 'you' and 'smile' with a blender pen, and inked those words with a Pixie Pink Stampin' Write marker. The rest is quite self explanatory.

I guess this is a good example of K.I.S.S!! (Keep it simple Sam!)






Stamps: Reason to Smile (retired), Burst into Bloom (retired)
Card: Old Olive, Pixie Pink, Whisper White, So Saffron
DSP: Walk in the Park (retired)
Ink: Old Olive, Pixie Pink

Friendship

This is going to be quick as I must be off to bed... It's been ages since I've played with a Colour Throwdown challenge, so this is my latest offering.

Once again, I've had to substitute Perfect Plum for Rich Razzleberry (as it's not available in Australia).

I've fallen back on a tried and true 'technique' for my last couple of cards that I've noticed myself using quite a bit recently when I'm either a) a bit tired or b) not ENTIRELY comfortable with the colour combo I'm working with - one sheet wonder stamping. Although I don't always stamp a whole A4 sheet, generally a much smaller panel. It hasn't failed me yet!!

Must be off, but hope you enjoy my recent postings.

Stamps: Organic Grace (Level 1 Hostess), Wagon Full of Fun (Summer Mini)

Card: Garden Green, Perfect Plum, Mellow Moss, Whisper White

Ink: Garden Green, Prefect Plum, Mellow Moss

Other: Pewter Hodgepodge Hardware (retired)

Welcome Kiannah

Yet another bundle of joy has entered the world - and there are MANY more to come over the next months in our world. It feels like almost every woman (remotely my age) I know is expecting another miracle (including my sister - I'm going to be an auntie!!). Lots of baby cards coming up!

I thought this weeks Color Throwdown challenge suited a baby card. Kiannah's Mum was my Body Balance instructor (pre-Luana when I actually went to the gym!) and is quite bright and funky, so pastels weren't quite right... I've used Pixie Pink instead of Positively Pink.

Apologies for the atrocious photo - will try to remedy that tomorrow.

This has ended up being a bit of a blast from the past card. I inked up the gorgeous butterfly from Reason to Smile (retired) in Pixie Pink and stamped it off before going over the bigger flowers with a Stampin' Write Marker, and taking the ink off the middle flowers with a blender pen and inking them with a Bashful Blue marker. I also used the Pixie Pink marker to run around the edges of the butterfly wings. I love Best Friends Alphabet (retired), so used it with the Stamp-a-ma-jig for the names. The little flowers in Bashful Blue are also from Reason to Smile, and I edged the names with Certainly Celery ink. A little bit of interest was added around the edge of the Certainly Celery Prints DSP (also retired) with some paper piercing and faux stitching with the white gel pen. Some more faux stitching (this time free hand) was added to the Blooms Die Cut. The names and the butterfly were popped up with dimensionals and the butterfly wings curled up just a tad.

We're looking forward to meeting Kiannah this week!

Stamps: Reason to Smile (retired), Best Friends Alphabet (retired)
Card: Pixie Pink, Whisper White
DSP: Certainly Celery Prints (retired)
Ink: Pixie Pink, Bashful Blue, Certainly Celery
Other: Blooms Die Cut Flowers, white gel pen, paper piercer

Colour Throwdown Commotion

The girls over at Color Throwdown have put together yet another great combo - it's been a while since I've been organised enough to play along.
I thinks it's always interesting what comes to mind when you first see colour combos. For this one, my thoughts were along the lines of using the a-little-challenging-to-use set Ocean Commotion. I must admit, I've pulled it out a little bit lately...

I am really happy with how this turned out. No fancy techniques, just a little bit of stamping off , a little bit of tearing (for the sand) and fussy cutting, but the colours just work so well.

Thanks for the inspiration!

Stamps: Ocean Commotion, Short & Sweet

Card: Garden Green, Lavendar Lace, So Saffron, Whisper White

Paper: So Saffron Patterns

Ink: Garden Green, So Saffron, Lavendar Lace

Other: Small oval punch

Retired Offerings

The colour combo this week over at Colour Throwdown was using some gorgeous retired colours, gee I miss them!

This is such a lovely colour combo and matches in PERFECTLY with the retired Afternoon Tea DSP. I had made a birthday card previously for my friend Grace, but thinking about it, it wasn't really right for her - she LOVES DSP, but not so keen on the ribbons and frilly stuff, so I thought using Afternoon Tea DSP as the main feature would be perfect for her.

Quite straight forward - the hardest part was figuring our how to place the squares. The DSP squares are 1 1/8" and the Chocolate Chip backing squares are 1 1/4" (all cut with trimmer - I don't have the punch yet!).

Much better for you Grace!!

Stamps: One of a Kind
Card: Groovy Guava (retired), Chocolate Chip, Soft Sky (retired), Whisper White
Paper: Afternoon Tea (retired)
Ink: Groovy Guava (retired)
Other: 1 1/4" Circle Punch, 1 3/8" Circle Punch