Crazy Crafters Blog Hop with special guest - Wendy Cranford

Welcome and thank you for joining me in a special Crazy Crafters team blog hop.

We are hopping with a special guest - The very creative Wendy Cranford.

The theme of this blog hop was to CASE (Copy And Selectively Edit) one of Wendy's cards.


Here is the card of Wendy's that I chose to CASE:

I chose this card of Wendy's because I loved the subtle detail created by the clear embossing. I have a jar of clear embossing powder which I have to say I have never even opened, so I was keen to give this embossing technique a try. To checkout Wendy's card in more detail click here.


Here is my version:

My card base uses Whisper White and I created my coloured strip using my Melon Mambo, Pumpkin Pie & Daffodil Delight ink pads and some sponge daubers to create a random pattern on some white cardstock, which I sprayed with water once I'd finished to blend the colours.

After letting my strip dry, I stamped the large vine from the Falling Flowers stamp set in Versamark and then heat embossed in Clear.

My sentiment is stamped in Melon Mambo and comes from the retired Painted Petals stamp set.

The flowers are all from the Falling Flowers stamp set and were stamped in Memento Tuxedo Black ink and then coloured using alcohol markers - I used the retired Blendabilities in Melon Mambo, Pumpkin Pie, Daffodil Delight and Old Olive. Once coloured, the flowers were cut out using the co-ordinating May Flowers framelits.


Here is a list of the supplies and tools used to create this card:

Whisper White A4 Cardstock (106549)
Melon Mambo Classic Stampin' Pad (126948)
Pumkpin Pie Classic Stampin’ Pad (126945)
Daffodil Delight Classic Stampin' Pad (126944)
Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad (132708)
Blendabilities Markers: Melon Mambo, Pumpkin Pie, Daffodil Delight & Old Olive
Versamark Pad (102283)
Clear Stampin’ Emboss Powder (109130)
Heat tool (129056)
Painted Petals Stamp Set (Photopolymer 137146)
Falling Flowers Stamp Set (Clear 139556 / Wood 139553)
May Flowers Framelits (140276)
Magnetic Platform (130658)
Sponge Daubers (133773)
Snail Permanent Adhesive (104332)
Tombow Multipurpose Liquid Glue (110755)


If you would like to purchase or see any of these items in more detail, just click on the relevant link above. 


Australian customers: Join my free Customer Rewards program by making a purchase through my online store. Click here for more details.

**If you do make a purchase, be sure to use the current Hostess Code on your order to receive a free gift from me. Click here for the current code.**

Thanks so much for stopping by and checking out my creation.

If you enjoyed my card, it would make my day if you left me a comment below :)

Don't forget to continue the hop all the way around to see what the very creative Crazy Crafters team have come up with.

You are currently visiting me - Kirsten Aitchison, so checkout the list below to see who is next in the hop.

You're Awesome ! | International Blog Highlights - Theme: Encouragement

Today I am taking part in my first International Blog Highlight which is run by my Stampin' Up! upline and inspiring leader Kylie Bertucci.

The theme for this International Highlight is Random Acts of Kindness: Encouragement.

Click Here to view other amazing projects submitted by creative stampers from around the globe, and to vote for your favourite projects. (Link goes live 28th August at 6.30pm AEST)

EDIT: THANKYOU to all those who voted for my card in Kylie's International Highlight.

I am excited to add that I placed 6th in the top 10 :)

The Top 10 winners took part in an International Highlight Blog Hop. Check out the hop and my card here.

The card I created for this highlight had some layout inspiration from this weeks Global Design Project #050 | Sketch Challenge

Here is my card:

I only recently got my hands on the super cute Bella & Friends stamp set and just had to have a play.

I stamped this cute image in Memento Tuxedo Black ink and created a soft sky background using my Soft Sky ink pad and a sponge. To get the clouds I just used a die cut cloud shape as a mask and sponged around it. I then coloured in the image using alcohol markers - I used the retired Blendabilities markers in Smoky Slate, Cherry Cobbler, Old Olive, Daffodil Delight & Bermuda Bay.

To give the dogs nose a little shine, I placed a tiny drop of crystal effects on his nose. I also wanted to make the balloon stand out so I stamped and coloured another balloon and then fussy cut it. I rounded the cardstock balloon with my fingers and raised it up with a dimensional.

My card base used Bermuda Bay cardstock and my sentiment which is stamped on Whisper White in Bermuda Bay ink comes from the retired SAB stamp set Botanicals for You. I only wanted part of the sentiment on the original stamp so just inked up the part I wanted.

To get my arrow shape for the sentiment I actually used 2 different framelits from the Gift Card Envelope & Trims Thinlits. I ran it through my bigshot first using the larger arrow from the set and then cut out the final shape using the long thin banner to trim off the top & bottom from the original shape.

Here is a list of the supplies and tools used to create this card:

Whisper White A4 Cardstock (106549)
Bermuda Bay A4 Cardstock (131286)
Soft Sky Classic Stampin’ Pad (131181)
Bermuda Bay Classic Stampin' Pad (131171)
Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad (132708)
Bella & Friends Stamp Set (Clear 141870 / Wood 141867)
Botanicals for You SAB Stamp Set
Blendabilities Markers: Smoky Slate, Cherry Cobbler, Old Olive, Daffodil Delight & Bermuda Bay
Gift Card Envelope & Trims Thinlits (135854)
Magnetic Platform (130658)
Stamping Sponges (141337)
Snail Permanent Adhesive (104332)
Stampin' Dimensionals (104430)
Crystal Effects


If you would like to purchase or see any of these items in more detail, just click on the relevant link above. 

Australian customers: Join my free Customer Rewards program by making a purchase through my online store. Click here for more details.

**If you do make a purchase, be sure to use the current Hostess Code on your order to receive a free gift from me. Click here for the current code.**

Thanks so much for stopping by and checking out my creation.

If you enjoyed my card, it would make my day if you left me a comment below :)

Now don't forget to vote for your International Highlights favourites here

Crazy Crafters Blog Hop with special guest - Dawn Olchefske

Welcome and thank you for joining me in a special Crazy Crafters team blog hop.

We are hopping with a special guest - The talented Dawn Olchefske.

The theme of this blog hop was to CASE (Copy And Selectively Edit) one of Dawn's cards.


Here is the card of Dawn's that I chose to CASE:

This card of Dawn's stood out for me as I just love my Botanical Builder framelits, and there were a few framelits in my set that I hadn't used yet and this was a perfect card to test them out on. To checkout Dawn's card in more detail click here.


Here are my versions:

Tempting Turquoise

Pacific Point

Calypso Coral

Melon Mambo

I knew I wanted to use Whisper White & Basic Black for my card base & main layer. The only drama I faced was selecting a colour for the flowers. I couldn't choose a favourite colour so I ended up making 4 cards, all using beautiful colours (and a number of my favourites).

The card base on all my cards is Whisper White and I cut 2 x A6 pieces of Basic Black and used the leaves edgelit from the Botanical Builder framelits set. I ended up using the negative portion as well so 2 of the cards are like a mirror. I carefully glued down all the little leaf cut outs using the main die cut as a template.

My leaves are all Old Olive cardstock cut out using the Botanical Builder framelits, with the co-ordinating leaf vein image from the Botanical Blooms set stamped in Old Olive.

For my flowers I chose Tempting Turquoise, Pacific Point, Calypso Coral & Melon Mambo, with Daffodil Delight for the centre of the flowers. All pieces were cut using the Botanical Builder framelits as well.

I chose a different sentiment for each card and stamped the sentiment in the same colour as the flowers. My sentiments came from the following stamp sets: Rose Wonder, Thoughtful Branches (Limited Edition for August only), Flower Patch and Butterfly Basics. 


I still can't choose a favourite, which is your favourite card/colour?


Here is a list of the supplies and tools used to create these cards:

Whisper White A4 Cardstock (106549)
Basic Black A4 Cardstock (121688)
Old Olive A4 Cardstock (106576)
Daffodil Delight A4 Cardstock (121680)
Tempting Turquoise A4 Cardstock (108598)
Pacific Point A4 Cardstock (116202)
Calypso Coral A4 Cardstock (124392)
Melon Mambo A4 Cardstock (119980)
Tempting Turquoise Classic Stampin' Pad (126952)
Pacific Point Classic Stampin' Pad (126951)
Calypso Coral Classic Stampin' Pad (126983)
Melon Mambo Classic Stampin' Pad (126948)
Old Olive Classic Stampin' Pad (126953)
Botanical Blooms Stamp Set (Photopolymer 140757)
Rose Wonder Stamp Set (Photopolymer 140697)
Thoughful Branches stamp set (Photopolymer 143539 / Bundle 144328 )
Flower Patch Stamp Set (Photopolymer 134207)
Butterfly Basics Stamp Set
          (Photopolymer 137154 / Clear 138816 / Wood 138813)
Botanical Builder Framelits (140625)
Magnetic Platform (130658)
Snail Permanent Adhesive (104332)
Tombow Multipurpose Liquid Glue (110755)


If you would like to purchase or see any of these items in more detail, just click on the relevant link above. 


Australian customers: Join my free Customer Rewards program by making a purchase through my online store. Click here for more details.

**If you do make a purchase, be sure to use the current Hostess Code on your order to receive a free gift from me. Click here for the current code.**

Thanks so much for stopping by and checking out my creation.

If you enjoyed my card, it would make my day if you left me a comment below :)

Don't forget to continue the hop all the way around to see what the very creative Crazy Crafters team have come up with.

You are currently visiting me - Kirsten Aitchison, so checkout the list below to see who is next in the hop.

Crazy Crafters Blog Hop with special guest - Jennifer Michalski

Welcome and thank you for joining me in a special Crazy Crafters team blog hop.

We are hopping with a special guest - The talented Jennifer Michalski.

The theme of this blog hop was to CASE (Copy And Selectively Edit) one of Jennifer's cards.


Here is the card of Jennifer's that I chose to CASE:

To checkout Jennifer's card in more detail click here.


Here is my version:

My original card idea was going to use a Butterfly as well, but I decided at the last minute to go with a flower theme. I have used the same DSP series paper as Jennifer's card, but I have chosen a very different pattern from the pack.

I used Basic Black for my card base, layered with a piece of Designer Series Paper from the retired Botanical Gardens series. My horizontal cardstock strip is Old Olive, and I heat embossed in black my sentiment, which comes from the Rose Wonder stamp set. These pieces were all adhered using Snail adhesive.

My flower was made using the Botanical Builder Framelits and some Old Olive, Cajun Craze & Hello Honey cardstock. My flower pieces were attached using Tombow glue.

I found this a fairly quick and easy card to create, and I plan to make a few more as it is a great way to show off (or should I say "use up") the beautiful papers in my fairly large DSP collection.

Here is a list of the supplies and tools used to create this card:

Basic Black A4 Cardstock (121688)
Old Olive A4 Cardstock (106576)
Cajun Craze A4 Cardstock (121683)
Hello Honey A4 Cardstock
Botanical Gardens Designer Series Paper
Rose Wonder Stamp Set (Photopolymer 140697)
Botanical Builder Framelits (140625)
Magnetic Platform (130658)
Versamark Pad (102283)
Black Stampin' Emboss Powder
Heat tool (129056)
Snail Permanent Adhesive (104332)
Tombow Multipurpose Liquid Glue (110755)

If you would like to purchase or see any of these items in more detail, just click on the relevant link above. 

Australian customers: Join my Customer Rewards program by making a purchase through my online store. Click here for more details.

**If you do make a purchase, be sure to use the current Hostess Code on your order to receive a free gift from me. Click here for the current code.**

Thanks so much for stopping by and checking out my creation.

If you enjoyed my card, it would make my day if you left me a comment below :)


Don't forget to continue the hop all the way around to see what the very creative Crazy Crafters team have come up with.

You are currently visiting me - Kirsten Aitchison, so checkout the list below to see who is next in the hop.

Crazy Crafters Blog Hop | Thoughtful Branches

Hello and welcome to our Crazy Crafters Blog Hop showcasing the NEW limited edition Thoughtful Branches stamp set and co-ordinating Beautiful Branches Thinlits dies.

This limited edition stamp set and thinlits dies set are only available for purchase till 31st August 2016 (or while stocks last), so get in quick before this gorgeous set runs out.

There are a couple of different options for you to purchase these sets:

Individually:
Thoughtful Branches Photopolymer Stamp Set (143539) for $47
Beautiful Branches Thinlits Dies (143538) for $54

OR

*** Buy the stamp set and thinlits dies set as a bundle and save 10% ***
Thoughtful Branches Photopolymer Bundle (144328) for only $90.75

There are so many gorgeous creations out there using this set and the matching thinlits, but I wanted to try something a little different.

Here is what I came up with:

My colour scheme was inspired by autumn. I just love how the trees near my home change from green, to yellow to orange and then red. So I used these colours in my card.

I cut out a piece of Whisper White cardstock and punched out a 1-3/4" circle from a scrap of paper and then trimmed it down a little. I temporarily attached the trimmed circle to the piece of Whisper White cardstock, this was to act as a guide when stamping my leaf images.

Using the cute little leaf image from the Thoughtful Branches set I stamped the first circle of leaves in Old Olive. The next circle of leaves were stamped using Daffodil Delight, then Pumpkin Pie and lastly Real Red. I then removed my temporary circle from the centre of the leaves.

I grabbed a sheet of Old Olive cardstock and the "For You" stamp from the Thoughtful Branches set and stamped the sentiment in Versamark ink and then heat embossed the sentiment using White embossing powder.

I punched out the sentiment using my 1-3/4" circle punch and adhered it to the centre of the Old Olive circle of leaves using Snail adhesive.

I layered the stamped piece of Whisper White on to a piece of Real Red cardstock using Snail and then using more Snail adhered it to my Whisper White card base.

And there you have it, my autumn inspired "For You" card. The great thing about using this sentiment is the card can be used for a variety of occasions.


Here is a list of the supplies and tools used to create this card:

Whisper White A4 Cardstock (106549)
Old Olive A4 Cardstock (106576)
Real Red A4 Cardstock (106578)
Old Olive Classic Stampin' Pad (126953)
Daffodil Delight Classic Stampin' Pad (126944)
Pumkpin Pie Classic Stampin’ Pad (126945)
Real Red Classic Stampin' Pad (126949)
Versamark Pad (102283)
Thoughful Branches stamp set (Photopolymer 143539 / Bundle 144328 )
White Stampin' Emboss Powder (109132)
Heat tool (129056)
1-3/4" Circle Punch (119850)
Snail Permanent Adhesive (104332)


If you would like to purchase or see any of these items in more detail, just click on the relevant link above to be taken to my online store. 

Australian customers: Join my Customer Rewards program by making a purchase through my online store. Click here for more details.

**If you do make a purchase, be sure to use the current Hostess Code on your order to receive a free gift from me. Click here for the current code.**

SHOP NOW

Thanks so much for stopping by and checking out my creation.

If you enjoyed my card, it would make my day if you left me a comment below :)


Don't forget to continue the hop all the way around to see what the very creative Crazy Crafters team have come up with.

You are currently visiting me - Kirsten Aitchison, so checkout the list below to see who is next in the hop.