Welcome to the Crafty Inklings’ 5th Blog Hop!

Hi there!  Thanks for dropping by for my project in this 5th Hop.  We are a group of Stampin’ UP! Demonstrators mainly from Norfolk, but I’m privileged to be a Kent Honorary Member of the team along with my Upline, Sarah Keerie.

This month’s theme is ‘Deck The Halls’, in honour of our latest Catalogue and with Christmas rapidly creeping up on us.  My Wish List for this one was rather lengthy 😂 and I have been busy making cards for not just Christmas, but other occasions to show how versatile these sets can be.

I’ve chosen to show you a selection of cards using the Painted Autumn Suite, which can be found on pages 48 & 49 of the Catalogue.    You are probably thinking something along the lines of ‘what on earth do Sunflowers have to do with Christmas?’  Well, this set can be used for occasions all year round, and not just as Sunflowers 😉

So here is my first card – the Christmas one, which I CASEd from Ann Lewis.  I did alter the sizes slightly to make the card 4″x6″ (Ann is In Australia, so their paper and card sizes are slightly different to ours here in the UK).

  

I used Tranquil Tide and Emerald Envy Inks for the petal layers, and Real Red Ink for the centres.  Any white areas were covered by using the ‘nut’ part of the Acorns with Early Espresso Ink.  The ’tis the Season’ stamp comes from the special Host Promotion Set – Merry Patterns – which is included free for the Host in all orders over £250 placed before 31st October 2017, so you still have a couple of weeks to qualify for a set (see my website for full details).  The outline was stamped using Early Espresso Ink, then the pattern added using Real Red Ink.  The base card is made from Real Red Cardstock with a mat layer of Early Espresso Cardstock.

My second card is for a Birthday, and features the stamps as they were originally intended – Sunflowers.  My thanks to to JanB for the inspiration for this card.

   
 

For this card I used Crushed Curry and Cajun Craze Inks for the two layers of petals, then Early Espresso Ink for the centres, including the little dots.  The leaves were stamped with Pear Pizzazz Ink as the main layer and Old Olive Ink for the detail.  

To finish off I used the Happy Birthday Stamp for the Guy Greetings Set and arranged all the pieces on a mat layer stamped using the Marbled Background Stamp and Smoky Slate Ink which I stamped off to give a lighter impression.  As a final flourish, I added a length of Burlap Ribbon across the centre of the Marbled Mat, and some Pearl Jewels on the centres of the sunflowers and on the sentiment.

  

I wasn’t too sure about this card when I first made it, but the more I look at it, the more it grows on me.

This watercolour technique I CASEd from Billie Moan adding in a Watercolour Smooshed Background which can be found all over YouTube 😉

I used Powder Pink, Blushing Bride and Real Red Inks for the background, and the same colours for the flowers as the second card.  These were applied to a piece of wet Watercolour Paper, and spritzed again after stamping to aid the running of the colours.  Being impatient, I dried the whole thing using my Heat Tool, added a length of Gold Natural Trim and a bow then matted it onto a piece of Blushing Bride Cardstock and then a 6″x4″ card base made from Very Vanilla Thick Cardstock.

My final card is a little different 😜
   
 

I’m afraid I can’t credit this little guy to anyone, as he appears to have run off my Pinterest Board 🙄, so if I’ve CASEd your Hedgehog, please leave a comment so people know where my inspiration came from as it’s seriously cute!

I stamped the petal layers in Crumb Cake and Chocolate Chip Inks, then the middle in stamped off Chocolate Chip.  The face came from the Foxy Friends Set and I drew in the ears and feet with an Early Espresso Stampin’ Write Marker.  The background trees also came from the Foxy Friends set using Pear Pizzazz and Old Olive Inks, and the rest of the colours were applied as a watercolour wash using (top to bottom) So Saffron, Soft Sky, Pear Pizzazz and Crumb Cake Inks and an Aqua Painter which I LOVE!!

On the close up photo you can really see the detail of the petals – I really enjoy playing with this set, and Im looking forward to trying out more animals 🤔

I hope you’ve enjoyed your visit – I’ve made loads more cards using products from the Autumn/Winter Catalogue, so subscribe to follow my blog at the top of the page so you don’t miss the updates.

If you like to have a go at making some of these for yourself, you can buy the supplies used from my 24/7 Online Shop.

One last thing before you hop on over to Sandra’s Blog, I’d love to hear your comments 😘

Happy Stampin’

Babs xx

Teachers’ Christmas Gifts

This year I only had two Teachers’ Gifts to make, so I decided to give Shell Bower’s large Christmas Crackers a go. They were super easy to make and James loved them – and so did his teachers, especially after he proudly told them his Mum had made them 🙂

Inside I managed to comfortably fit these …

Advent Box Calendar

I know it’s a bit late for others to have a go at, but I’ve finally finished my Advent Box Calendars for the boys and wanted to share them with you. I just need to pop down to Sainsbury’s for some fillings (can’t give too many details at this time, but suffice to say they will all be edible – plus a few extra for Mum!)

So, to make these you will need:-

* A4 Cardstock in Green, Red and White (as with the Halloween treats, I used cheap Cardstock from Hobbycraft)
* Trimmer
* Scoreboard (or Scoring Blade for your trimmer)
* Numbers Stamp Set (I used the Stampin’ UP! 25 Days set from the Autumn-Winter 2014 Catalogue)
* Inkpads in Green and Red (I used SU Mossy Meadow and Cherry Cobbler)
* Sticky Strip
* Stampin’ Dimensionals/ Foam Pads
* Bone Folder
* Scissors

Cut the Green & Red Card to measure 5″ x 7.5″ – you’ll get 2 from each sheet and you’ll need 25 in total (12 in green and 13 in red)

Butting the long side up to the top of your Scoreboard/Trimmer, score at 2″, 3.5″, 5.5″ & 7″. Turn the card so the short side butts to the top and score at 1.5″, 3.5″ & 5″. Cut notches as shown above and them, using your trimmer, cut the edges of the lid down to 0.5″ as shown, then notch the corners.

Fold and burnish your score lines.

Add sticky strip as shown, making sure the sticky strip on sides nearest the lid only go halfway up.

Fold up the sides and stick to make a box, making sure the sides with the half piece of tape are attached first.

Cut 25 squares measuring 2″ x 2″ – 12 in Red and 13 in Green. Cut 25 squares measuring 1.75″ x 1.75″ in White and stamp each number once, alternating between Green and Red ink, with the odd numbers in Green. Stick the numbers to the topper square of the colour matching the ink.

Attach Dimensionals/Foam Pads to the back of each topper, then attach it to the front of a box of the opposite colour (green toppers on red boxes and vice versa).

I hope that made sense lol. If you’d like to buy the items I used from Stampin’ UP! then take a look at my online shop at http://www.magiclady.stampinup.net 😉