Traditional Christmas cards today, one bright and one vintage looking.

This first vintage style card uses the Skaters from Winter post and teams them up with the Medallion background stamp, it would look great in lots of colours and it would also be easy to make lots!  The brad goes either side of the ribbon to make a flat embellishment, with just enough sparkle!

Now this card is using Real Red and Old Olive ink, a perfect match for Christmas. I have just used one stamp set for this card, Season of Joy.

Happy Stampin’

Today it takes centre stage on Christmas cards.  The first card is completely flat, so no postage worries, it uses the new colour Pool Party a soft aqua, perfect for Christmas cards, the sentiment is from Petite pairs.

The next card also uses Winter Post but adds in the fir tree from Lovely as a Tree.  Everyone NEEDS Lovely as a Tree it is a fabulous set! You can cut off the Top note if you wish, but I just wrap it over the top score line and glue it down.

This final card takes the Top Note die and cuts it a second time to give this stylish square mat.  A stamp and punch from Contempo Christmas and a small bow and the card is finished.

Happy Stampin’

These are cards we made at my Card Club which I hold each month at Titchfield Community Centre on the first Thursday evening and Friday morning of the month.  We make 6 cards and the class cost is £14, but if you place a minimum of a £22 order your class is free!  That’s fabulous value and we have such fun, lots of chatting, laughing, drinking tea and eating biscuits and crafting with new friends, it’s a wonderful way to spend a few hours.  You can see all the dates by clicking here.

The card above is using 2 new colours to Stampin’ Up! UK, Island Indigo and Pool Party partnered with Very vanilla is makes a lovely combination.  The Merry Christmas is from the sentiments set Petite Pairs, a really useful set.  The card is flat again, to keep those postage costs down.

The card below is much more rustic, this is mainly due to the Naturals Ivory cardstock,  the cardstock has a slightly bumpy texture and a fleck in it, very trendy.  The flourish is from Everything Eleanor and the tree is made by sticking 3 Petitie Pennant Punches together.  Although the card is 3D, it will still fold flat enough to post standard rates.

Happy Stampin’

This swap was to make something, anything, 3D this was the criteria

You must use some kind of embellishment (ribbon, buttons, brads etc)

Now, these 3D items should be “WOW” items – they make you want to stop and look at them. As the groups will be small please do put some extra time and effort into making your 3D  item have that WOW factor.

Some ideas include:

Bookmarks, keytags, boxes, bags, note card sets, mini albums….

I knew what I wanted to make straight away but it took me ages to find the item I wanted to stamp on!!!

Here are the swaps

All nicely parcelled up, see Sage Shadow and Chocolate Chip again!!!  When you take the lid off the box this is what you will find…..

And  inside…….is one of these lovely bangles

Now they took some time to make, I stamped them first with stazon, then coloured them using re-inkers a 2-tone effect was the look I was after and each one needed 2-3 coats then I coated them with Cyrstal Effects again 2-3 coats, Bamboo poles are great for a drying rack!

I hope they like them!

I look forward to sharing with you the lovely things I will receive in return.

Happy Stampin’

Amanda

A big part of convention is swapping and I have made almost 100 card fronts to swap with my fellow demontrators from the UK, France and Germany.  The great thing about swapping is you get so many ideas from the cards you receive, it’s going to help when my inspiration deserts me!

This is what almost 100 cards looks like.

On the back of each one is the  details of the products used and how to make it along with my contact information as well.

My convention has a bit of a Sage Shadow, Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla theme going on as you will see in later posts this week!

Here is a close up of the swap card.

Stamps : Winter Post
Inks: Sage Shadow, Chocolate Chip
Cardstock: Sage Shadow, Chocolate Chip, Very Vanilla
Accessories: Chocolate Chip ribbon, 2 way Glue pen, Dazzling Diamonds, Sponge Dauber

Happy Stampin’

Amanda

2 weeks from magazine launch, my busiest month of the year for Stampin’ Up! I have had lots and lots of home workshops, classes every weekend and the small matter of the first European Stampin’ Up! convention (also in 2 weeks) to get prepared for, posh frock, flights, class projects, swaps, lots and lots of swaps…….

It is all coming together and I am such a lucky lady to have so much wonderful crafting going on in my life, I’d just like an extra 6 hours a day please…….!

I do have a card for you today, a Christmas card made with Winter post, I have made the deer into Rudolf by using my Real Red marker pen, you could of course use some of our new fantabulous (It’s not a real word but I love it!) glitter.

I have used a piece of Whisper white card for the base, punched a circle from a post it note to mask the moon and Brayered over the top with Brilliant Blue ink.  A torn piece of Whisper White makes the snow, I then over stamped the deer and the trees, added the postmark and some tombow glue and Dazzling Diamonds glitter, not forgetting the red nose!

Stamps : Winter Post, Lovely as a Tree
Inks: Close to Cocoa, Brilliant Blue
Cardstock: Whisper White, Brilliant Blue, Close to Cocoa
Accessories: Brayer, Real Red Marker, Dazzling Diamonds, Tombow Glue

Happy Stampin’

Amanda

Tommorrow the new catalogue goes live, there will be a link from my website to the new catalogue, but the best way to see it is on your sofa with coffee and cake holding it in your hands!  You will have to provide the coffee and cake, but I can get a catalogue to you, email me!

Today’s card is a straightforward card, easy to duplicate for lots of Christmas cards with a variety of stamps.  The deer is from Winter Post and I have made him into Rudolf with my Real Red marker!

Stamps : Winter Post, Seasonal Wishes
Inks: Old Olive, Close to Cocoa
Cardstock: Close to Cocoa, Old Olive, Whisper White
Accessories: Ski Slope Designer series paper, Real Red marker

Come back tomorrow, blog candy and lots of new projects for you to see!

Happy Stampin’

Amanda

Stamps : Season of Joy, Winter Post
Inks: Bashful Blue, Chocolate Chip
Cardstock: Ski Slope designer paper, Whisper White

Happy Stampin’

Amanda

The Inspiring Inkees are a team spread from the Shetland Isles to the tip of Cornwall, it’s definitely the very best team and really friendly too. I am in regular contact with my team by phone, email and letter and I am available to them whenever they need me. In addition I have a team website, that is password protected, within it is an online live chat facility for team training sessions, challenges and lots of fun. My class planners and techniques are all available for the team to download and use with their customers.

Within my team I have business demonstrators who are building teams of their own and working on building a business that ultimately will allow them to give up thier 9-5 job and hobby demonstrators who join for the discounts and the social aspect of being part of a team. Most of my team are some where in between, enjoying the income, discounts, workshops, classes, events and the fantastic products that Stampin’ Up! sell.

I have lots more information about joining my team here and here.

Joining Stampin’ Up! was one of the best decisions I have made, why not join me and become an Inspiring Inkee too.   Email me and I’ll call you for a chat.

My card today was inspired by a card Amy made and she brought it along to a team training day we had in July, our quarterly team days are an opportunity for all the team to come together and share and learn from one another. We have business training, sharing good practise, team support and stamping, lots and lots of Stamping!!!!

Winter Post Card

Stamps : Winter Post, Best yet
Inks: Old Olive, Chocolate Chip, Bashful Blue
Cardstock: Very Vanilla, Real Red, Bashful Blue, Brilliant Blue
Accessories: Love notes envelope, Dazzling Diamonds, Sponge Daubers, Tombow Glue, Real Red Grosgrain Ribbon, Designer Paper – Ski Slope.

Happy Stampin’

Amanda