Merry and Type Triple stamped

With January having five Saturday's it is time for the challenge at 52 {Christmas} Card Throwdown to revisit old challenges with our Pick A Previous feature. This time it's a previous sketch. To help you there is even an archive of all our previous sketches. I chose a golden oldie from almost three years ago, February 2012

I have given it a very up to date makeover though, thanks to the colour challenge at The Colour Throwdown

Here is my thoroughly contemporary take on the sketch. I stamped the graphics from the set Merry and Type with the triple stamping technique. I needed to use my Stamp-a-ma-jig for this and I don't mind admitting this is actually my second attempt after I stamped the very last image upside down on my first one!

I have replaced the sentiment banner of the sketch with a glitzy ribbon and added a few coordinating gems

 In the end I decided to 'rescue' my first attempt by turning the sketch upside down. Here you can see both cards

Birds and Banners

It's a double challenge this week at CAS Colours & Sketches where we give you a sketch AND a colour combo to create your CAS card with. This sketch is fab, there are so many different variations, I know because I tried at least six, and I was only using stamps, never got to the die cuts or papers!

...and here are your colours, great for a guy card, or a soft natural look, or geometric (I could go on...)

But I wont, instead I will show you my card, made using two sets, my very seldom if ever inked up Decorate A Daisy and a more recent set called Happy Congratulations.

On the photo below you can see the dimensional effect of the foam pads. I deliberately left a very large white border around the stamped panel for a cleaner look.

I even stamped inside

Hope you like my card. I think it would be good for a male or female recipient, I certainly am a bit short of birthday cards at the moment so I'm sure it will soon be sent out! happy Crafting!

Oh Little Town

Happy Saturday! Being on the DT at 52 {Christmas} Card Throwdown means that you have to love Christmas, or more exactly, Christmas cards, because we make them all year round! Today I struggled, but I am very pleased with my efforts. The challenge this week is based on a technique-inlaid dies. I had to ask a friend about this as I wasn't sure. But basically you need several die cuts of your design and you inlay the colours into the negative of your die cut shape.

Now, I wasn't sure of this at all, but here is my best shot.....

I used a Tim Holtz die called Townscape. I cut it out of black card stock. I also punched out the starry night sky. I cut out all the houses and then I mounted this card onto silver card stock. I put some double sided tape behind the cut out houses. I used the die to cut five more Townscapes in different coloured card (using up scraps, I like that) and cut out individual houses. I pushed these shapes into the black die negative, but I forgot that using the double sided tape would also make the window and door apertures sticky. Silly Girl. So out comes the glitter.

Finally I added a ripped piece of white card to look like snow. This is my favourite way to make snow on a card, it always looks so effective.

I love the way this card looks, it reminds me of the carol Oh Little Town Of Bethlehem. Trying out a new technique is great fun, why not have a go, or may be you do this all the time and are an expert. Either way we'd love to see what you can create.

In The Pink

I've seen lots of Valentines day cards around in blogland  so I decided to join in this week, with my card for CAS Colours & Sketches. This challenge blog alternates between colour inspiration and sketches, and this week it is the turn of the sketch, designed by our lovely leader Jacqueline.

I initially chose three coordinating papers but ended up only using two. I'm hopeless  at making banners, so after quite a few failed attempts these three were the best. I decided they looked better off set, rather than straight. I made the 'love' part of the sentiment by using the negative of the die cut and backing it with pale pink card.

The 'you' part is stamped in Whisper White craft ink. It's from the Work of Art set. I am not yet very comfortable stamping with this ink, I find it very juicy and it takes on the colour of the dark card stock sometimes. Luckily that was the effect I was hoping for this time. On this photo you can see the dimensional aspect of the card. I hand cut the heart shape, I don't have a die or punch. Everything was mounted onto a base of White cardstock, which was then added to the card blank.

It's a great sketch to work with, you can make the banners as I have done, or stamp them like some of my teamies, hop on over to the blog to check out all the DT cards.

Blue Horses

Do you like designing cards for the men? If so I hope you've checked out The Male Room, especially this week where the challenge is to use shades of blue. I made one card and got carried away with the stamping that it ended up as two!

I used a stamp set from Visible Image which is themed by the French Revolution and I only used one blue ink colour, Pacific Point, and achieved the shades by stamping off once, twice or three times. For this card I also used my 'go to for male cards' stamp Hardwood, as a background. The fleur de lys shape was stamped and fussy cut out to add a bit of dimension.

You can see better in this photograph....

Then I wondered if the background detracted from the horse image, particularly the lightest shade. So I made this card, a bit more clean and simple

This one is just pure stamping, and a mat of coloured card stock, blue of course. I think it's my favourite but I still like my first effort so I decided to share them both.

Silver Bells

I love a 5 minute card- the time taken to make this one for 52 {Christmas} Card Throwdown, although I do admit that thinking about the design took a lot longer. It would be great for a set of cards too.
The cue for my card ( and yours, if you choose to join in with the challenge, and I hope you will!) is...

I think this is the first time we've done bells and I had to dig deep into my Christmas crafting stash to find a small bell punch. The washi tape is new, though,

I would have put the tape lower, just using a third of the White space, but then the bells didn't fit and you can't have them upside down, can you! The clappers were cut off and replaced with small gems
You can see better on this picture.

As the card was so quick to make I even made a matching envelope. This CAS style really is my favourite style of card to make.

Playful Cat

Today's card was inspired by Splodge, my adorable, now three- legged cat. He's been through a lot the last four months but he's back to his lovable, cheeky self again and I love the way he's bounced back. I had a little help from the colour combo at CAS Colours & Sketches

I am always on the lookout for cat images or dies and I found this one just a few weeks ago. When I saw it I knew I had to have it, but when I stamped it I was even more pleased as the facial detail, including the whiskers came out beautifully. Not bad for £1!
Here you can also see the shine on his coat, achieved by using clear embossing powder over the black ink.

I made the 'spool of wool' from some red twine, which fitted the colour scheme perfectly. As the twine and the cat are both NBUS I would like to also enter the challenge at Casology this week. My white space is actually Kraft, but I am sure that counts.

Blue Baubles

Another Saturday, how has the first week of January gone for you? Back to work? Kids back to school? Back to the normal routines of daily life? Yep, that just about sums it up for me too! But I'm still thinking of Christmas as we present the first colour challenge of 2015 from 52 {Christmas} Card Throwdown

I took my Christmas tree down on Twelfth Night and it was that that made me think of this card. The blue spruce pine tree branches were stamped using a ornamental Pine, then I stamped and embellished some of the baubles from Ornament Keepsakes, luckily I have the dies too so cutting  ornathem out was no problem. I've used foam pads of different thicknesses to give the impression of depth. These are all blues, although I appreciate the Parisienne Night looks purple in the photograph.

How many candles?

If you follow my blog you will know that CAS is my preferred style and so I'm so happy that CAS Colours & Sketches is back with a brand new set of colour and sketch challenges for you. We start with a sketch, from this month's hostess, Jacqueline.

 
We always say that we have to be able to see the elements of the sketch in your card. On my card I have swapped the oval for a cupcake and placed it over to the right of the banner panel. The sentiment has taken over a larger area and everything 'slipped' to the bottom. Apart from that, it's identical!!

Two photographs, I am always challenged to produce good photos  of white cards, the light is never right. Each candle and flame was punched out using the Cupcake Builder punch and carefully added to the base white card stock, my colour combo is Lost Lagoon and real red and I used some naturals Ivory card to punch out the icing/ frosting part of the cake.

I used foam pads to add the cupcake to give some dimension to my card.

The sentiment which I stamped inside is just perfect.

Hello Baby

A new year and a new challenge from The Male Room, and we kick off the year with the theme New Beginnings.

My card this morning is for a new baby, a boy of course, since we are a challenge blog for masculine inspired projects. I even managed to incorporate a ribbon on this one, breaking one of my own 'rules' of not using trimmings like ribbon on a a masculine card.
The images are stamped in Versamark onto pale blue card, heat embossed with Pearly Silver embossing powder and matted onto gorgeous, pearlised silver card. The stamps themselves are an eclectic mix of freebies and cheapies and I've given then the 9 square treatment- one of my favourite design layouts. This card kept evolving.... I then decided to make it into an easel card, using the teddy image to make the 'stand' element. I added a matching pearly silver card mat to the inside. Which is your favourite image here? I think mine are the tiny handprints, although I love the building blocks and the teddy bear.

I hope you have time to join in with the challenge. Over at Make My Monday they have the same theme challenge so I'm going to link up my card there, you could too!

Stars on the Tree

Happy 2015 to you all! I've had a couple of weeks without crafting, busy with family and friends at Christmas and New Year both here in the UK and in The Netherlands. Fun times! Back to it now with my first post of 2015, a Christmas card for  52 {Christmas} Card Throwdown. I always love making Christmas cards, even when Christmas is only just over. We have new team members on the DT and a brand new look to the challenge blog and we start with a fabulous sketch...

I loved the CAS look of this one and was inspired by the star shape, although you can use any shape you like. The embossing folder is a new purchase from the Sheena Douglas range. I've used lots of silver glitter card for layering and a star punch to puch out the little stars. I added a few star shaped gems too. Finally, I used the Christmas tree as a backdrop for my photo, sad to say I'll have to take it down soon :(

I'm going to enter The anything goes challenge at Crafty Hazelnuts Christmas Challenge