A small part of my collection ....

I thought that I would share just a little, a very little, of my ribbon collection. Collection sounds better than hoard, right?

My cut ribbon is stored in cannisters according to colour, in theory becasue it's easier to find the one that I want but in truth, because I like it in order. And it looks pretty when they are all next to each other!

My red cut pieces cannister ....

And the contents .... it doesn't look much if you spread it around!



Thanks for stopping by .....

Beware Pirates ....

Have you ever had a stamp set that you loved and had to have but then left it to sit on the shelf? Beware Pirates is my shelf set. Or, I should admit, one of my shelf sets. I inked it up and re-discovered why I had to have it.

I wanted the central image to look like a battered old warning poster.

I used Early Expresso ink on the same cardstock so the pirate ships, Beware Pirates and ARRRRRRR had a more 'ghostly' effect.

I'm not sure what the ribbon is called; it had a sort of hessian fell to it. I didn't have my ribbon scissors to hand and those I used are normally reserved for stick tape so the result was a pull on the ribbon making it a bit tatty. So I made it a bit tattier, sometimes the best ideas come from a 'little mishap'.

The problem now is that I've no idea where to put a sentiment or if I should .... any ideas?

SU Materials used:
Stamps: Beware Pirates
Inks / Markers: Earley Expresso, Crumb Cake, Real Red
Cardstock: Early Expresso, Very Vanilla

Thanks for stopping by ....

No stamping today ....

There's still tons of Union Jack merchandise about at the moment from cups to cushions, thanks to a certain wedding. Sadly, the bunting in the village main street has long been taken down but I can't wait for the Diamond Jubilee next year so we can have it all back out again. I'm hoping that they leave it out for the entire Jubilee year!

I've only just got my hands on my first Soft Subtles DSP, so had to have a go at making my own .....

I worked out that by putting the white panel in, I could get two cards out of a 5" square of each colour, bargain crafting, well worth the extra measuring and cutting.

I've seen some gorgeous creations (way too many to link to) using the Two Step Owl punch which I don't have yet. I had a go with Cal's at her last crop, so just had to add a Mr & Mrs Owl. I inked the edges of the owls and their eyelids and added some dabbing to the Mr's chest along with gold beaks. And, of course some jewels!

Then I bent them around my finger to give them a gentle curved shape, bent the feet back to make it look like they were sitting on the branch and attached with foam pads down the middle.

And the strange thing is, there's no ribbon on this card .... and I don't mind that!

SU Materials

Stamps: None!

Cardstock: Early Expresso, Crumb Cake, Whisper White, Marina Mist DSP, Rose Red DSP Rose Red Textured, Wild Wasabi Textured

Punches: Owl, Two Step Bird

Other: Basic Pearls, Basic Rhinestones

Thanks for stopping by ....

Sail away with me ....

Like lots of other people, I can really struggle to make cards for men, particularly as they don't tend to like ribbon on them! Luckily, I don't have to make that many but I love the new Sail Away stamp from the Stampin' Up mini. I've used a favourite colour combo of Baja Breeze, Early Expresso and Whisper White to make a more masculine version.

This also suits my love of white space on a card. I have also managed to get some texture on there using string, if not my beloved ribbon. Took me a while though to remember the knots, too long since I was a Girl Guide.... I have also made a version with layered sales but kept this boat flat so the string gives all of the dimension to the card.

As I said, this is a favourite colour combo, which I also used on some of last year's Christmas cards .... is it too early to mention Christmas yet? Of course, Dasher had to make an appearance.

I love how SU do matching ink and cardstock so the So  Swirly wheel stands out more than using Versa ink but still stays in the background. Did you spot the Early Expresso Grosgrain? Even though I have the whole reel, I worked on the less is more approach .... I can't help but hoard my ribbon! Dasher's antlers cry out for gem accent, of course along with his nose. The mottled inked background was done by pressing the ink pad when closed to ink the lid and the daubing with cotton wool.

SU materials:
Stamps: Sail Away, Occasional Greetings, Dasher, So Swirly wheel, Seasonal Wishes (retired)
Inks/Markers: Early Expresso, Baja Breeze
Cardstock: Early Expresso, Baja Breeze, Whisper White
Ribbon: Early Expresso Wide Striped Grosgrain

Thanks for stopping by ....

Slow please .... Peacock Crossing

Yes, it's true. The other morning, going home from my Mum's house after dropping her off early for her hols, this is who I encountered crossing the road.

And believe me, he took his time crossing.

I absolutely love the Baby Blossoms set from the new SU mini catalogue. In fact, when I use this set, I can get a little carried away and make these en masse.

A really good, timesaving tip is to buy this set in wood mount and make templates using Stazon ink and acetate so you can position the stamps really easily and quickly using the Stamp-a-ma-jig. I wish I could tell you that this was my idea but it was Michelle's. Here's my set, made with acetate backing that came with acrylic stamps making it completely free, kostenlos, gratis, you know, the best sort of crafting!

It's also really good for setting out the elements to make sure that they all fit within the frame. It's definately worth taking the time to do the acetates! Thankfully, there's a matching punch for the Four Frames set so I don't have to cut them all out - yeayyy - I hate cutting out, and in no time I have a stash of toppers ready to go on cards or be made into gift tags.

Here are a couple of the finished tags in different colour ways, accented by the tiny Basic Pearls. The small sentiments are all from the Vintage Labels set, sadly no longer available.

Must go .... a little someone has come to say stop inking, it's time for a walk!

SU Materials:

Stamps: Baby Blossoms, Four Frames, Vintage Labels (retired)

Inks/Markers: Bashful Blue, Pretty in Pink, Rose Red, Certainly Celery, Wild Wasabi, Marina Mist Crumb Cake, Early Expresso

Ribbon: Rose Red Seam Binding, Marina Mist Taffeta

Other: Basic Pearls

Thanks for stopping by ....

CASEing swaps .... round two

Here is the second of my swap CASEs. The original was made by Val, hers is on the left in the picture.

Val used a set that I don't have but I loved her colour scheme so CASEd that along with the layout. I like CAS with blank space so the intricate, delicate pattern of the DSP in Perfect Plum called for a plainish central panel. Early Expresso frames the panels giving it a really rich feel; I may have to reuse the design with Rose Red and Early Expresso - perfect for Turkish Delight lovers! The crown is from Artistic Etchings accented with Basic Pearls and Queen for a Day is an old Anna Griffin stamp.

Here's a closer pic, the line of pearls used the pearl strips.

I love how the ink co-ordinates perfectly with SU papers and cardstock.

We have a joke at work about 'who's Queen' when we want our own way; this card will go to one of my colleagues with a note to say she can borrow my crown .... but only for a day. Mind you, it is her birthday in November, I'll probably have put this away in one of those safe places by then and your guess will be as good as mine as to which one!

SU Materials:

Stamps: Artistic Etchings

Card / Paper: Early Expresso, Perfect Plum DSP

Inks: Perfect Plum
Other: Basic Pearls

Thanks for stopping by ....

CASEing swaps .... round one!

Here's the first of my CASEd swaps. The original was made by Margaret, her version is on the left.

I've changed the card colours, put a bow instead of a knot, used the leaves from the Baby Blossom stamp set and used a different Happy Birthday (only 'cos I don't have the one Margaret used) but other than that .....  a straight copy! Thanks Margaret for the inspiration.

And ... I finally managed to cut into my new seam binding, must be a record for me, as I've only had it about 3 weeks, usually the first cut takes much longer!

SU Materials Used:

Stamps: Baby Blossoms, Sincere Salutations

Inks: Rose Red, Pretty in Pink, Wild Wasabi

Ribbon: Rose Red seam binding

Card: Crumb Cake, Whisper White

If you want any of the Stampin' Up products used, give Cal a shout here.

Thanks for stopping by ....

Card for a very Special Lady

This is a card I made recently to let a lady who is very special to a lot of people know that we were thinking of her.

You see, Jan runs North West Golden Retriever Rescue and to date she has rehomed over 8,000 Golden Retrievers and a smattering of other needy dogs who find themselves needing a new home, including our own two gorgeous girls. As an independent rescue, she and her team work tirelessly to find new homes for goldies and fundraise to continue their work.

Sadly, Jan had to say goodbye to one of the goldie oldies she took into her own home this week, so this is what we sent her, just so she knew we had her in our thoughts. I recently got a goldie stamp from the USA and it just had to be used on this card.

SU Materials:

Stamps: Sincere Salutaions

Inks: Certainly Celery, More Mustard, Early Expresso

Card: Certainly Celery, Certainly Celery Designer Paper

Tools: Blender Pens

Thanks for stopping by ....

Return Swaps

Just a quickie post today to show you the swaps I received from the Favourite Stamp Swap.

I've already started CASEing these... so many lovely examples and colour combos but now of course I need more stamp sets!

Thanks for stopping by....

Well, I finally did it!

Hello and thanks for visiting my first ever blog posting, it's been a long time coming!

I recently entered my very first swap run by Linda on the In Love With Stamping forum. The idea was to use your favourite Stampin' Up stamp set. I immediately knew that I wanted to use the Nature Walk set from the new SU mini catalogue. I just love the bird; my Dad used to breed canaries and budgies and it reminded me of being in his aviaries as a child.

I was pretty nervous about sharing my creations with a group of seasoned SU demos, without the added pressure of making these left handed due to a broken wrist!

The first card I made was based on the records and books my Dad kept, with a masculine theme.

This was rejected as too dark and nowhere for a sentiment on the front. Plus as my blog suggests, I love ribbon and to make a card without it is like Romeo without Juliet, Torvill without Dean, just plain wrong! So I decided on brighter colours with a more 'country' feel and here's the result ....

The corner knot was taken from some antique birthday cards I have from the 1930s/40s. I'll post the return swaps in a later post, there are some lovely examples.

SU Materials used:
Stamps: Nature Walk, Sincere Salutations
Ribbon: Very Vanilla Grosgrain
Card: Old Olive textured
Inks/Markers: Rich Razzleberry, Old Olive, Regal Rose, Early Expresso, So Saffron, Wild Wasabi, Certainly Celery, Creamy Caramel (retired), Close to Cocoa (retired), Apricot Appeal (retired)

If you would like to order any of these Stampin' Up products, give Cal a call or drop her an email, you'll find her contacts here or click on the blog link to the right.

Thanks for stopping by ....