Stampin Royalty #297 - Pinspired

So much for more posting in 2015!  Life has been pretty full on in this household - my daughter in the first year of high school so academic expectations have ramped up, although I think it's the interest in boys and social life that has increased here.  Ballet has been given the flick and it's now all about rowing (sadly seasonal), so we need to find another outlet for exercise.  I think lack of motivation on my part was particularly key to the silence over here.

The highlight of my year, apart from significant birthdays and wedding anniversaries was the trip to Scandinavia which we arrived home from last week.  It has been a part of the world I have always wanted to visit and it didn't disappoint.  A bit over 2 weeks in duration and covering Helsinki (Tallinn for a day), Copenhagen and Stockholm. All charming and unique, the people friendly and helpful and the wealth of history made my heart sing.  The weather was perfect, and all were fantastic walking cities.  The food was amazing, with several memorable meals, the downside was that for Australians, it was expensive, but we went knowing that.

Helsinki

Seaplane Museum, Tallinn

Copenhagen

Stockholm

So it was really just a taste, my husband, who has been working in the north of Finland was fortunate enough to see the Northern Lights on 4 nights and took the most wonderful photos.  Need to go back for that.

So to the challenge - Pinspired.  

Suzanne Dahlberg - My Mind's Eye paper (SSS)

With Christmas fast approaching, and card stocks low, there will be a concerted push to create, and create quickly.  I love the simplicity and elegance of Suzanne's card, letting the paper work its magic. I coloured paper with ink as none of my papers match Blackberry Bliss which was my starting point. 

What you need

Cardstock - PTI white;  gold foil

Stamps - Clearly Besotted Sweet Little Sentiments

Ink - SU Blackberry Bliss;  PTI Lavender Moon;  Memento Sweet Plum;  Versamark

White embossing powder

Stampin' Royalty #246

Tis our season for birthdays, particularly for my daughter's friends.  I was given free reign with the colour combination for this card, so went with one of my favourite palettes I discovered recently on Pinterest.  Would love to have seen this dress in full, spectacular I bet.  

I haven't played along with Stampin' Royalty for a very long time (well, any challenge really),  and was struggling  with a layout.  My daughter wanted to give her friend something with a bookmark as we had given her a voucher to a local book shop.  

So after much fiddling about, I used the PTI Mat Stack 3 die double cut and attached at the top.  I have then put sticky magnets at the bottom to hold it to the page.

This is what was under the bookmark.

What you need

Cardstock - SU white, Bermuda Bay

Stamps - PTI Mat Stack 3, All Booked Up;  WMS Funky Feathers

Ink - SU Bermuda Bay;  HA Tide Pool;  Brilliance Pearlescent Rust

Die - Mat Stack 3

Sequins

Just to finish off, here is another card in my ever ongoing series of using up 12 x 12 paper.  I found this photo in a Christmas catalogue last year and thought I would have a go at reproducing the pattern on the toiletries bag.

The paper is MME Lush 2, I think and the graph paper lent itself to the design.  I stamped the whole sheet with PTI The Sweet Life, and am really happy with how it turned out.  

All very CAS

I would like to be able to say that we are having a rare sunny weekend but, we aren't.  Gloomy and rainy again.  A quiet weekend punctuated by a 60th birthday celebration last night.  It was one of my husband's former triathlon friends, so it was wonderful to catch up with a few familiar faces from the squad of 12+ years ago.  It's a bit surreal to see these men and women now, married with children, when the squad were training hard, they were just out of university, coping with new jobs and relationships.  

So, these 2 challenges dovetail nicely.  This stamp set is about the only one I have with anything vaguely balloon like.  I used vellum for the background to create the illusion of sky, perhaps it worked.

What you need
Cardstock - BB aqua;  PTI vellum
Stamps - PTI Everyday Button Bits
Ink - SU Early Espresso, Real Red
Buttons - PTI
Thread - DMC

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One for my Christmas card collection. 

I hadn't tried to emboss with this die before, but knew the effect would be lovely.  Just wanted to keep it simple, with just a touch of red and black

What you need

Cardstock - PTI white

Stamps - PTI Mega Mixed Messages

Ink - Memento Tuxedo Black

Die - Memory Box

Gems - ?

******

And just to finish, a quick card for the Stampin' Royalty challenge.  The theme  

STRIPES

I saw a design similar to this on a quilt (Pinterest).  I forgot to pin it, unfortunately.  

What you need

Cardstock - PTI white

Stamps - Avery Elle Knotty, To the Point

Ink - Memento Lady Bug, Nautical Blue

Holidays at last ...... almost

Just one more ballet commitment to go and we will be on holidays officially!  My daughter has her ballet exam tomorrow afternoon, and they are very well prepared.  Yesterday, together with her "adventure" buddy, she did the Spartan Run.  Now you may ask what that is and you may also be asking what sort of mother lets her daughter do this before a ballet exam.  Well, I'll tell you ..... one that certainly wasn't thinking ahead when she cheerfully said, yes, nothing on that day, she is on holidays!!!

The Spartan Run is a an obstacle course cum exercise in lunacy.  Needless to say, the clothes that came home were destroyed with mud (make that 2 sets because my husband did the adults (or idiots) version.  Of course, now it's winter they held it west of Brisbane - absolutely freezing.  

It did give me a day to make cards though ....... YAY

This is the previous sketch from Cardabilities which I missed but really loved and, as you may know, I cannot resist Navy.  There were so many elements to this graphic and would have liked to use them all. 

I don't know that there was any driftwood or any other type of wood in fact, but wanted to use something like that, so cut very thin strips of kraft card.  

What you need

Cardstock - PTI Kraft, white

Patterned paper - MME Lush 2 (Navy Stripe)

Stamps - Cas-ual Fridays Bold Wishes; PTI Star Prints;  SU Ocean Commotion

Ink - Memento Nautical Blue; SU Marina Mist, Midnight Muse

Punch - Fiskars

******

Along with one of my standby challenges, I wanted to get a few birthday cards under my belt.  There are a few coming up in my family, including my best friend who is "enjoying" a significant birthday today.  I have seen a couple of beautiful cards done for this challenge, and I think this will be a very versatile sketch (notice using up more of the patterned paper - yay me!)

Turquoise is a tricky colour for me - not because I don't like it, just that my SU ink pad isn't the best and have no other colour close to it, so I have opted for the paper

What you need

Cardstock - PTI white

Patterned Paper - MME Lush 2 Turquoise stripe

Stamps - Avery Elle Petals and Stems;  PTI Stylish Sentiments: Birthday

Ink - SU Poppy Parade, Gumball Green;  Regal Rose

Corner Rounder

Die - PTI Ribbon Tails

OK, time to work on my PTI blog hop card - the theme is gold.  I have a few ideas but really need to settle on just one, before it looks just plain gaudy.

Bolshoi Ballet Sunday

Guess who's going to the ballet today!!  Can't wait.  Queensland audiences have been warned that we are too reserved when watching ballet (of the Russian kind) and that if we feel like clapping and cheering mid dance, then we should.  My daughter has one busy day today, still sick of course.  First up this morning she is doing "The Colour Run", a new thing to Australia but it looks SOOOO much fun.  She is doing it with one of her school/triathlon friends, so I think they will giggle more than run and enjoy having as much colour as possible hurled at them.  Parents at a respectful distance behind.  That is on the Gold Coast - 1 1/2 hours from home.  

So once we are plastered in colour, she has to be back for a private ballet lesson, presumably un-coloured, not sure how that will work out as I am pretty sure she won't have time to come home.  THEN, we go to the Bolshoi.  BIG BIG BIG here in Brisbane.  

So by evening she will be exhausted.  Le Corssaire (never been staged in Australia before) is 3 hours 20 minutes long with 2 intervals.  So we won't get home till after 7 and of course, it is a school night.

First up, a Christmas card of the CAS kind.  I assure you that his beard and hat are furry.  This one could be a goer for my daughter's friends cum the end of the year.

Edited to Add:  My little friend here was nominated for a Shout Out - what a thrill!

What you need

Cardstock - PTI white; Canson shimmer gold

Patterned paper - PTI patterns in New Leaf, Pure Poppy

Stamps - PTI Holiday Button Bits, Communique Curves

Ink - Memento Tuxedo Black;  Delicata Gold Glitz

Copics

Brads - SU

*****

Now for one of my favourite challenges, particularly when we have  a divine graphic like this one.  Summer - hmmm, second day of winter here, but none the less, most of our year is spent in near summer conditions so shouldn't have too much trouble channelling warmth.

It is hard to see, but the yellow paper is striped

What you need

Cardstock - PTI white, Summer Sunrise;  SU Old Olive;  BB mid pink

DSP - SU Brights Collection

Ink - Versafine Onyx Black

Stamps - Cas-ual Fridays Stamps Woot Woot

Dies - MFT Layer Flag Stax;  TE branch;  PTI Ribbon Ends (?)

MS butterfly punch

Pearls and Gems - Kiasercraft

*****

My Avery Elle stamps have arrived and what better way to christen them than with my first Avery Elle challenge - and in beautiful blues and blue-greens. 

Apologies for the photography - taken on my iPhone

What you need

Cardstock - PTI white

Stamps - Avery Elle Framed Fonts, To the Point

Ink - Memento Danube Blue, Bahama Blue;  PTI Hawaiian Shores

Twine - The Twinery (Ocean)

? Christmas ..... already!

I have had the Festive Friday challenge sitting in my to do list for quite some time, but this is the first time I have attempted it.  So to go with that, the latest WMS Christmas card challenge, hosted by Charmaine Stack and the theme is Glitter.

So, lots of glitter and my favourite Christmas sweet treat - Gingerbread.  I am too lazy to decorate it but love baking and of course eating it (any time of year really).  

What you need

Cardstock - PTI white

Glitter card - Bella! Glitz Rouge

Stamps - WMS Nutcracker Sweet, Candy Jar Christmas Fillers

Ink - SU Early Espresso

Punch - SU scallop

Stickles - Red, Diamond

*****

I missed the dessert option for Dynamic Duos, initially but I was determined to use a bear for this sketch.  Must be telepathic!  

What you need

Cardstock - PTI white; SU Pacific Point

Stamps - PTI Baby Button Basics

Ink - VersafinStame Onyx Black;  Memento Bahama Blue

Copic T1

Various punches - SU

Glossy Accents

Goosebumps - K and Company

*****

And finally for this weekend - 2 colours I don't use much and 1 quite a bit.  And yes, you guessed it, another piece of 12 x 12 bites the dust - very satisfying!  I admit to a bit of recycling too.  The twine around the button came with my first (I anticipate many more) consignments of Cas-ual Fridays Stamps.  I had a very hard time limiting the number of stamp sets.  It's all Susan Raihala's fault, she has created some really great cards with these stamps lately.

I digress.  More baby cards, male or female this time I think

What you need

Cardstock - PTI white;  SU Calypso Coral, Island Indigo

Patterned Paper - Pebbles Inc Ever After (Sparkle)

Stamps - PTI Baby Button Basics

Ink  - Versafine Onyx Black

Die - SB classic scalloped circles

Pen - SU Calypso Coral

Button - PTI

Little Boy Blue .....

My Mum needed a baby card for one of her former students, now a long term friend.  As usual I had more girly stuff than masculine, so, never one to not use up another piece of my 12 x 12 pile, I came up with this one.  

 What you need

Cardstock - Gina K white; BB brown; X-press It blending card
Patterned paper - Pebbles New Arrival (Mommy's Boy)
Stamps - PTI Baby Button Basics, Star Prints
Ink - Memento Rich Cocoa, Summer Sky
Copics - B12, B14
Silver Organza
Button - PTI (Spring Rain)
DMC thread

4 cards for Sunday

 It's been a while, but I have been busy.  Getting rid of a lot of 12 x 12 paper into cards and able to use it in a few Christmas cards as well.  Thanks to all those lovely people who took the time to wish my daughter well with getting braces on, so thoughtful.  She has come through it really well and is not very noticeable.  The first few days were a diet of tomato soup and Nurofen but things are pretty much back to normal.  It helped too, that she had friends over the following 2 days to take her mind of it.

Now for some cards, which came together remarkably quickly

Loved this sketch as soon as I saw it.  I thought of stitching over  the stripes, glad I didn't, and love the look of the final result.

What you need

Cardstock - BB Navy, Red;  PTI white

Stamps - HA Year Round Sentiments

Dies - PTI Hearts;  MFT Fishtail Flag Stax

Ink - SU Real Red

Gems - SU

*****

What a stunning dress!  So elegant!

I didn't want to mess around with it too much, and glad I didn't add anymore leaves.  I know there was no red in the graphic, but, hey, it was still on my desk.

What you need

Cardstock - PTI white

Stamps - PTI Embroidered Blooms

Ink - Memento Tuxedo Black; SU Real Red

Gems - Kaisercraft

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Who can resist red and kraft/cream.  I used the picture in the top right corner and in the process used up another paper from my stash.  Couldn't think of any better stamp set to use than the Nordic style Folk Art Florals.

What you need

Cardstock - PTI Kraft, cream, red

Patterned Paper - American Crafts

Stamps - Wplus9 Folk Art Florals;  Verve (sentiment)

Ink - SU Real Red;  PTI Kraft

Dies - Spellbinders Classic Rectangles

****

Unusual from me, so few combined challenge cards, but couldn't not go without doing it.  More black but I love it with grey, and even though Father's Day for us is in September, my card is already done.

 What you need
Cardstock - PTI white, black;  Silver glitter Doodlebug ?
Stamps - PTI A Little Argyle;  Wplus9 Woodgrain Silhouettes (sentiment)
Ink - Memento Tuxedo Black, London Fog, Grey Flannel
Dies - PTI Pretty Peonies