Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator Catherine Carroll

Sale-a-Bration Blog Hop 2014

Thank you for joining us on another Pinkies Blog Hop! We're showcasing lots of gorgeous projects using new Stampin' Up!® products that you can earn free during Sale-a-Bration. Simply use the buttons at the end of each post to keep hopping!

I'm continuing my countdown to Sale-a-Bration with this jam-packed blog hop. If you've made it this far you must be overflowing with inspiration (and have a wish list as long as your arm...). I've got a couple of clean and simple cards for you, using the Banner Blast stamp set, matching banner punch and Sweet Sorbet DSP (each one available free with when you hit the magic £45 mark).

I do so love these cute little banners! I can see my punch being my go-to accessory for a while. And it gives me a reason to keep every teeny, tiny scrap of DSP that I end up (of course, I keep them all anyway - now I have a use for them all!).

The patterns on the Sweet Sorbet DSP are just gorgeous. And I've managed to cut up most of a pack already. There must be something wrong with me! It's also made me a Crisp Canteloupe convert. It's about time I used some more adventurous colour schemes.

Next stop is Michelle, with a couple of cards that are on my to-CASE list!

 

 

 

 

 

Follow My Heart for Valentine's Day

I've surprised myself this year - it's a whole 20 days before St. Valentine's Day and I'm managing to come up with some card ideas... maybe it's a sign that my long-absent crafting mojo is returning?

My husband and I went to Paris to celebrate the end of my first set of finals at university. I love anything with a Parisian theme to it, so the Follow My Heart stamp set is perfect. Don't miss out on getting it yourself - it's only available until 27th January!

Now, I'm not one for decorating envelopes, or even the inside of my cards. However, I was inspired by this card to create a lovely banner border for the inside of this one:

Now all I need to do before the 14th is fill it in!

 

 

 

 

Wonderful Wreath

It's about time I shared some of my Christmas card designs! Each year, I promise myself I will start in July. And then November comes around and I've barely had time to think about Christmas. At least the school holidays have started now, so I have plenty of time.

Even though I've not been blogging, I've been busy! I've done two stamp-a-stacks and a Christmas papercraft taster session for my local WI, so I'll share the cards from those over the next few days. They are all relatively quick and simple, so if you are a bit of a last minute crafter like me, hopefully you will find them useful to help you catch up with Christmas preparations.

My first stamp-a-stack was over a month ago now (I honestly don't know where the time goes during the Autumn term!). I kept the total supply list needed for the cards uncharacteristically simple, meaning that they didn't need to buy the whole catalogue to be able to replicate the designs themselves. 

I went with the classic combination of Cherry Cobbler and Old Olive here, with an almost compulsory Crumb Cake card base. I would have used Very Vanilla (my go-to soft neutral background) but the Season of Style DSP Stack pushed me towards Whisper White instead, and it does make the gorgeous wreath pop just that little bit better, don't you think? I couldn't help using the Expressions thinlits to cut the "Merry" from glimmmer paper to finish it off. I'm becoming a bit of a font and typography geek and the script is just perfect.
 

Stamp Sets:	Wonderful Wreath
Cardstock:	Cherry Cobbler, Crumb Cake, Old Olive, Whisper White Season of Style DSP Stack, Champagne Glimmer Paper
Ink:	Old Olive
Tools:	Big Shot die-cutting machine, Expressions Thinlits

More last minute Christmas crafting inspiration to come!

 

 

 

 

Digital Scrapbooking with My Digital Studio

Join Stampin' Up! enthusiasts across the globe in a celebration of all that is amazing about digital scrapbooking. There are going to be daily blog posts from the brand new international design team on mydigitalstudio.net packed with inspiration. There are also going to be daily deals - and even a free download tomorrow!

If you haven't tried MDS (My Digital Studio) then take advantage of the 30 day free trial which you can download here. 

Today's deal is a 50% saving on the lovely Amped Up Ampersands kit.

Click here to purchase and download your kit. Use the hostess code 33MEJUTP to be in with a chance to win the hostess benefits - every time you shop with this code you will get an entry, so use it each time you buy the daily deal from my online shop! 

 

 

 

 

Embossed Evergreen for Less is More

This is my rather last minute entry to this week's Trees challenge at Less is More.

I haven't embosssed anything for ages. When I started crafting, everything had to be embossed. I think the shiny effect was just too special for the 10 year old me not to put on EVERY card I made! But Chrissie's gilded card made me reach for the heat gun and gold powder...

You may have thought that Everygreen had retired, but it's hiding on the carry over list from last year's Autumn/Winter catalogue.

Stamp Sets:	Christmas Messages, Evergreen
Cardstock:	Naturals Ivory, Brushed Gold
Ink:	Old Olive, Versamark
Tools:	Embossing Buddy, Heat Tool
Finishing Touch:	Gold Stampin' Emboss Powder, Stampin' Dimensionals

I hope you like my attempt at Clean and Simple today. Don't forget the 25 stamps sets discounted by 25% - only available until Monday so don't miss out!