Tuesday 29 October 2013

ColourQ Hydrangea

Hiya!

This week at the ColourQ we have a soft and pretty colour combo inspired by this lovely patchwork quilt...


Now I didn't have most of these colours as Peach Parfait, Kiwi Kiss and Lovely Lilac have all retired and I generally tend to use just current product, so I used Crisp Cantaloupe and Wisteria Wonder instead of Peach Parfait and Lovely Lilac, and I made my own version of Kiwi Kiss using a mixture of Old Olive and Summer Starfruit reinkers!


When I saw the lavender/green combination I thought of the beautiful Best of Flowers set - thankfully the wonderful Claire who lives round the corner from me was kind enough to lend me hers so I could play! I used my 'kiwi' ink mixture to colour the leaves and stem with a blender pen (I also coloured some Modern Medley paper with the ink then cut into banners using the Itty Bitty Banner framelits) and coloured the flower with Wisteria Wonder with a touch of Marina Mist. I added a bunch of faux stitching with a Basic Grey marker and my favourite embellishments: ribbon and candy dots!

I used this week's Paper Players sketch for my layout...


Here's the recipe:
Stamps: Best of Flowers, Express Yourself
Ink: Stazon, Old Olive, Summer Starfruit, Wisteria Wonder, Marina Mist, Basic grey marker
Paper: Modern Medley dsp, Venetian Romance dsp, Basic Grey, Naturals White, Watercolour, Whisper White
Accessories: Wisteria Wonder chevron ribbon, subtles candy dots
Tools: Thinlets Labels dies, Itty Bitty Banner dies

Make sure you check out the fabulous creations from the rest of the Royal Court this week!

Thanks for stopping by...

x Amy x

Friday 25 October 2013

Creating Coastal Cakes

Hiya!

Today is the last Friday that I am on the Friday Mashup design team... and I'm the hostess this week! I'm so grateful to Holly for giving me the opportunity to be a part of such a fab team for the last year, and I'll be sure to pop back and play along with their future challenges where I can. On my last week I thought it would be fun to use one of my favourite colour combos from the SU catty...



Here's your Mashup Challenge:
  1. Create a project with the colors "Coastal Cabana, Crushed Curry, Smoky Slate & Basic Grey."
  2. Create a project with a "Cake."
  3. Or Mash it Up and create a project "with a Cake using the colors above."

How fab does that cake look?? For my card I used the wonderful Eastern Elegance dsp (my inspiration for the colours this week) as well as the Sketched Birthday set that I borrowed from Claire...


I used this week's Seize the Sketch challenge to help me with the layout...


Here's the recipe:
Stamps: Sketched Birthday
Ink: Stazon, Coastal Cabana, Crushed Curry, Smoky Slate
Paper: Eastern Elegance dsp, Basic Grey, Coastal Cabana, Whisper White
Accessories: Smoky Slate chevron ribbon, dazzling details
Tools: Scallop circle punch, paper piercing tool & template

Make sure you check out the rest of the design team's fab creations this week!

Thanks for stopping by...

x Amy x

Tuesday 22 October 2013

Hello Dahlia!

Hiya!

It's time for another ColourQ challenge and this week we've got another fun combo...


I went floral again this week as I've been itching to play some more with the fabulous Regarding Dahlia set and I thought the green & orange combo would work well with some paper piecing...


I have just realised that I misread the colours and used Pumpkin Pie instead of Tangerine Tango - duh! Shows the state of my brain at the moment... I'm so busy I don't know if I'm coming or going half the time lol! Anyway, the flower was stamped three times on some Quatrefoil dsp and embossed with black EP, then I cut out three different layers, coloured with a blender pen and matching ink then layered up with dimensional glue. The leaves are from Joyful Christmas, stamped on Epic Day dsp and also embossed in black EP and cut out.

I created the tag using one of the Chalk Talk framelits and stamped and embossed with black EP using one of the sentiments from Regarding Dahlia. The Wisteria Wonder panel was created using the Top Note die and stamped with one of the Flowering Flourishes using White craft ink.

Here's the recipe:
Stamps: Regarding Dahlia, Flowering Flourishes
Ink: Versamark, White craft, Pumpkin Pie
Paper: Quatrefoil dsp, Epic Day dsp, Wisteria Wonder, Basic Black, Whisper White
Accessories: Silver 1/8" ribbon, Black EP
Tools: Top Note die, Chalk Talk framelits

Make sure you check out the wonderful creations of the rest of the Royal Court this week - you're sure to be inspired!

Thanks for stopping by...

x Amy x

Friday 18 October 2013

Orange Maple Leaves

Hi there!

Just popping in quickly to share my Friday Mashup card with you... It's been a long & busy week and I'm pretty tired so I'm gonna keep it short and sweet! Liliana is bringing us an easy challenge with lots of possibilities...


I used some more of the Magnificent Maple leaves I had stamped at a training event recently as well as some partially put-together card bits and pieces also from the training (thanks Jane for the fab ideas!!).


I thought this would work quite well as a masculine thank you card (never have enough of those!)

Here's the recipe:
Stamps: Magnificent Maple, Hello Lovely
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Tangerine Tango
Paper: Sweater Weather dsp, Chocolate Chip, Soft Sky, Tangerine Tango, Crushed Curry, Very Vanila
Accessories: Naturals designer buttons
Tools: Apothecary Accents framelits, Oval Accent bigz die, Labels thinlets collection

Make sure you check out the design team's leafy creations this week!

Thanks for stopping by!

x Amy x

Tuesday 15 October 2013

Thankful Summer Garden

Hiya!

It's time for another great ColourQ challenge and this week there's a fun and quirky table to inspire us...


Lol! I wanted to use these colours with a floral image as I thought the pink/orange combo would work well with green for the leaves... I browsed through the SU catty several times formulating (or half formulating!) some ideas... and eventually went with this one...


I kept seeing the idea of the black die-cut lettering over the top of some flowers in my head, and Summer Silhouettes fit the bill perfectly. The leaves/stems were stamped with Old Olive onto Whisper White, then I added the Strawberry Slush flowers and the little Pumpkin Pie ones. The larger blooms were stamped separately, cut out and popped over the top (by the way, Stampin' Up paper snips are seriously fab... I couldn't find mine when I made this card {read: table was too messy and I couldn't be bothered tidying it up...} and so I used some other scissors - so much more difficult!!). The 'for you' is from Itty Bitty Banners, die-cut and popped up with dimensionals. You might just be able to see that the 'thankful' lettering is shiny and textured - I achieved that by painting it with Crystal Effects while it was on my silicone mat, then adhered it to the card... really striking IRL. I finished things off with some faux stitching around the edge and a few dabs of Dazzling Details to the middle of the small flowers.

Here's the recipe:
Stamps: Summer Silhouettes, Itty Bitty Banners
Ink: Old Olive, Pumpkin Pie, Strawberry Slush, Stazon
Paper: Whisper White, Basic Black
Accessories: Crystal Effects, Dazzling Details
Tools: Expressions thinlets, Itty Bitty Banner framelits

Make sure you check out the fun creations of the rest of the Royal Court this week!

Thanks for stopping by...

x Amy x

PS: This is a non-standard sized card (6 x 3 1/2")... I have a new toy arriving today that will help me make an envelope for this hopefully... more details on that soon!

Sunday 13 October 2013

Marina Maple Mojo

Hiya!

I took some time out last night to make a card for a couple of challenges: Mojo Monday's sketch and the colours from Stampin' Royalty...


I had stamped out a bunch of the Maple leaf single stamp from the Autumn/Winter catty at a team training event a few weeks ago and some were in Tangerine Tango so I started with them and ended up with this...


The maple leaf was stamped once on Tangerine Tango and again with Tangerine Tango onto Very Vanilla card, then cut out. The Marina Mist panel is core'dinations card embossed with the Alphabet Press EF and sanded lightly. The Basic Grey panel was stamped with one of the Gorgeous Grunge stamps (becoming a bit addictive!). The sentiment is from Hello Lovely, stamped with Tangerine Tango ink on Very Vanilla card and trimmed out with my paper snips. I added some Basic Black chevron ribbon and a little metal hardware clip as well as some Basic Grey candy dots to finish.

Here's the recipe:
Stamps: Magnificent Maple, Hello Lovely, Gorgeous Grunge
Ink: Tangerine Tango, Chocolate Chip, Basic Black
Paper: Marina Mist core'dinations, Basic Black, Basic Grey, Naturals Ivory, Very Vanilla, Tangerine Tango
Accessories: Basic Black chevron ribbon, Neutrals candy dots, essentials hardware clips
Tools: Alphabet press EF, Circles framelits, distressing tool

Thanks for stopping by!

x Amy x

Friday 11 October 2013

Melon Butterfly Thanks

Hiya!

I'm popping in quickly with my Friday Mashup card this week, using the sketch that Amanda has for us...


Here's your Mashup Challenge:
  1. Create a project using "the Sketch."
  2. Create a "Spooky" project.
  3. Or Mash it Up and create a "Spooky project using the above sketch. "

I didn't mash it this week as I don't do Halloween or spooky things, so I made a thank you card - which I always need more of! I wanted to use washi tape because of the strips on the sketch so I took out the Gingham Garden washi tape and took the colours from there...


I created the embossed background by embossing the Pretty Print embossing folder on Melon Mambo core'dinations cardstock then sanded.

Here's the recipe:
Stamps: Blooming with Kindness, Everything Eleanor
Ink: Melon Mambo, Night of Navy
Paper: Melon Mambo core'dinations, Quatrefancy dsp, Whisper White, Night of Navy, vellum
Accessories: Gingham Garden washi tape, Brights candy dots, Dazzling Details
Tools: Elegant Butterfly punch, Bitty Butterfly punch, 2 1/2" circle punch, Large scallop edgelit, sanding block

Make sure you check out the rest of the inspiration from the design team!

Thanks for stopping by...

x Amy x



Tuesday 8 October 2013

Raspberry Butterfly Frame

Hello!

I had a chance to play with a couple of challenges on my day off yesterday (much needed chill-out time!): the gorgeous colours from Just Add Ink and Chupa's fabulous Sketchbook Saturday layout...


And here's what I came up with...


I must say, I'm lovin' how this one turned out! It's got a few of my fave things at the moment: Regarding Dahlias (stamped with Coastal Cabana on Sahara Sand), Gorgeous Grunge, butterflies and the Dictionary Background stamp (stamped on the Raspberry Ripple frame). Adding a few pearls finished things off!

Here's the recipe:
Stamps: Regarding Dahlias, Dictionary background, Petite Pairs, Gorgeous Grunge
Ink: Coastal Cabana, Raspberry Ripple, Sahara Sand
Paper: Eastern Elegance dsp, Sahara Sand, Raspberry Ripple, Coastal Cabana, Very Vanilla, Naturals Ivory, Vellum cardstock
Accessories: Pearls
Tools: Squares framelits, Hearts a Flutter framelits, Beautiful Wings embosslits, Elegant butterfly punch, Bitty Butterfly punch

Thanks for stopping by...

x Amy x


Grateful Grunge Rock

Hiya!

It's time for another fun ColourQ challenge and this week we've got a fab inspiration piece for you...


There are lots of possibilities with this one, but I thought they would work well for a boy's card. I need to make some more thank you cards for guys and there's one boy in particular I wanted to make a card for - he's 15 and a drummer in our church band so I challenged myself to see if I could make one to fit the bill with these colours...


And I was pretty pleased with how it turned out! I borrowed Gorgeous Grunge from Claire, a fellow demonstrator who lives round the corner (very handy!!) and played with that as well as Pennant Parade to create this card. Gorgeous Grunge was one of those sets I saw in the catalogue and thought 'what's the point in that?!' then as I've seen more and more samples with it I've become strangely drawn to use it... now I can't wait to get my hands on it at Convention lol!

Here's the recipe:
Stamps: Pennant Parade, Gorgeous Grunge, Simply Serif mini alphabet
Ink: Daffodil Delight, Cajun Craze, Tempting Turquoise, Stazon black
Paper: Epic Day dsp, Cajun Craze, Tempting Turquoise, Basic Black, Naturals White, Whisper White
Accessories: Neutrals candy dots
Tools: Pennant punch, 3/4" circle punch

Make sure you stop by the rest of the design team and see what fab creations they've made using these colours!

Thanks for stopping by...

x Amy x

Friday 4 October 2013

Venetian Tangerine Dahlia

Hello!

Sorry I haven't had a lot of projects to share recently - I've been so busy doing overtime at work and prepping for classes that I haven't had any time to 'play' as much as I would like! Thank goodness for challenges that keep me making things lol! This week at the Friday Mashup, Tara has a great combination for us...


Here's your Mashup Challenge:
  1. Create a project with "Ripped paper."
  2. Create a project with a "a fussy cut image." (Cut something out)
  3. Or Mash it Up and create a project "with some Ripped paper & something Fussy Cut."

Now I love me some cutting, and ripped paper makes me think of vintagey kind of cards, so I headed in that direction using the beautiful Venetian Romance designer paper and the latest addition to my stamp collection - Regarding Dahlias (you might be seeing this a lot...!)


I stamped the flower twice onto Very Vanilla with Tangerine Tango ink then very quickly added some clear embossing powder and heat embossed to give a bit of texture and shine (neither of which you can see in the photo!). I coloured the flower in with a Crisp Cantaloupe marker along with the matching inkpad and blender pen, then cut out one whole flower and one smaller one to pop over the top. The leaves (from Joyful Christmas) were stamped on Pistachio Pudding with matching ink and also cut out.

I used some other challenges to help me on this one: Ann's fun tic-tac-toe challenge from the Paper Players as well as Karen's sketch from the Sweet Sunday Sketch...



Here's the recipe:
Stamps: Regarding Dahlias, Petite Pairs, Joyful Season
Ink: Tangerine tango, Crisp Cantaloupe, Soft Suede, Pistachio Pudding
Paper: Venetian Romance dsp, Very Vanilla, Pistachio Pudding, Soft Suede
Accessories: Pearls, clear EP, Very Vanilla seam binding

Make sure you check out the rest of the design team's fussy cut creations this week!

Thanks for stopping by...

x Amy x

Tuesday 1 October 2013

Epic Pumpkin Poppies

Hiya!

This week at the ColourQ we have a fresh and fun colour combo to play with...


Cute hey?! The combination of red and orange had me reaching for a flower set, and I eventually settled on Pleasant Poppies and ended up with this...



I coloured the poppies in with a Pumpkin Pie marker, then added shading with Real Red ink and a blender pen. I stamped and coloured the image twice, using one to cut out each poppy and popping them over the other image (die-cut with one of the ovals framelits) with dimensionals. I ran a Real Red marker around the edge of the oval to give it some definition against the background. The paper in the background is from This & That's Epic Day collection (still love this paper!), and I stamped the sentiment on top with Real Red ink (the sentiment is from the Regarding Dahlias set... brand new to my collection!). I added some lace tape and Pumpkin Pie candy dots to finish.

I used the layout from Unscripted Sketches for this one...


Here's the recipe:
Stamps: Pleasant Poppies, Regarding Dahlias
Ink: Real Red, Pumpkin Pie, Stazon
Paper: Epic Day dsp, Real Red, Whisper White
Accessories: Brights candy dots, lace tape
Tools: Ovals framelits

Make sure you check out the amazing creations of the rest of the Royal Court this week - as always, they are sure to inspire you!

Thanks for stopping by...

x Amy x