STAMPlorations Words are centre stage ...

There are times when words should take centre stage and the typografia stamps from STAMPlorations are perfect for this and to showcase these new stamps we are holding a blog hop and giveaway.

It is worth checking out the amazing designs that the team have created and if you leave a comment you will have a chance of winning a prize - so the more you comment the greater the chance that you could win.  I hope my cards will inspire you to check out the stamps.

The poinsetia stamp is from STAMPlorations: Christmas Bell Medley

If you decide to buy some of the stamps you can get an extra 20% off by using the code STAMPGIRLELAINE.

I hope that you'll join in with the blog hop.

Enjoy!

ASTM Holiday Challenge ...

Are you getting ahead with you Christmas cards? What about Halloween? or Thanksgiving? If you haven't made a start yet and need a reason then why not join this week's challenge at Addicted to Stamps and More as it is all about holidays!

As I'm still trying to get ahead with my Christmas cards that is the holiday I'm celebrating ... I know it is only June but we are half way to Christmas!!

A very CAS design - a stamped image coloured with markers and a die cut sentiment.  I would like to say that it was quick to make (something I always look for in a Christmas card) but it seemed to take ages!

I used:

Sheena Douglas - Christmas Visitors Stamp Set

Creative Expressions - Happy Christmas Die

Lawn Cuts - Stitched Rectangles

ZIG Clean Color Real Brush Markers.

I hope you'll find the time to join in with the challenge.

Enjoy!

Christmas Wishes ...

A quick post this evening!  I need to get moving on Christmas card production otherwise the final posting days are going to be here and I will not be ready!  I like to come up with a couple of designs that are easy to make ... tonight's card is my first attempt at this year's design - if you've been following my blog for sometime you will recognise last year's colour theme is still popular!

My first indoor photograph for weeks ... not good!

Embossed snowflake and heat embossed sentiment

What you see is what you get!  Apologies for the awful photographs I need to sort my lighting out for the long dark days!

I used:
Stampin Up - Endless Wishes
Uniko - Stunning Snowflakes
Distress Inks - Salty Ocean, Tumbled Glass and Peacock Feathers
Sizzix - Christmas Thinlits

It is One Layer Week this week at "Less is More" with the theme of 'Wishing' - so I think this fits!

Enjoy!

Purple Christmas ...

Good afternoon!  If you've visited my blog recently you have seen the Christmas cards that I have been making in colours other than traditional red and green.  Well just when I thought I would try some in traditional colours the wonderful designers over at "Less is More" decided that this weeks challenge would be to create a Christmas card NOT using red or green!!! So this is my contribution to my growing stash of Christmas cards.

A simple design, I think I might make a view more of this design in different colours and maybe a little more embossing.

I used:

Uniko Studio - Stunning Snowflakes
Distress Inks - Picked Raspberry, Shaded Lilac
Memento Ink - Grape Jelly

I'm also going to enter the challenge at Addicted to Stamps and More where the theme is Clean and Simple.

Enjoy!

Christmas in August ...

Plan ahead seems to be the mantra for producing Christmas cards!

I'm in Bruges at the moment on a short break with my daughter so I have scheduled this post - so if all goes according to plan it should be mid morning on Friday!

If you follow my blog or the Craft Stamper Magazine Blog you may remember that I won the June Take It, Make It challenge, something I am very proud of as the card represented a departure from my usual style.  As a winner I was invited to be on the Guest Designer Team for the August challenge.  The challenge was launched at the start of the month and the idea is to create a card using any technique that has featured in the Craft Stamper magazine since the start of the year.

My first problem was which technique should I use!  I have been toying with an idea for my Christmas cards and the more I thought about it the more I realised that the concept was ideal for this opportunity - so out came the stamps and the inks.  I chose the Repeat Stamping Technique as showcased by Lydia Brooke Evans in the March Issue.  As I will be making a number of these cards I have tried them out in different colours - you should be able to see a black and white version on the Craft Stamper Blog.  These are the second and third versions:

I used

Clearly Besotted Stamps
Simon Says Stamps
Distress Inks
Stampin Up Inks

This is the card that I won the original challenge with:


Enjoy!

Minimalist ....

Today's contribution to the Christmas card stash.  

A little closer....

I include an insert in each card but leave them blank so that you can put your own message in them.

Christmas!!!

Just a taste of some of the items I've been creating -

Santa Sacks

Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer

Christmas Stockings