Another 3 minute Reason to Smile

It's Three Minute Thursday here and today I have another quick way to use the gorgeous Reason to Smile stamp set. Come and see:

This has to be one of my most used layouts I think! It's perfect for this technique: I masked off a strip on the card front with post it notes, stamped the small outline flower repeatedly and coloured the flower centres using a marker (no need to worry about being too exact!)

After removing the masks I scored the edges of the panel with my Simply Scored board and finished with this lovely sentiment from Curly Cute.

Here's what you'll need to make this card
Stamps: Reason to Smile, Curly Cute
Ink: Early Espresso, Lucky Limeade
Card stock: Crumb Cake
Other: Lucky Limeade marker, Simply Scored, Stamp-a-majig
I'd be delighted to order any of these items for you and can have them delivered to your address in the UK. I'm committed to providing excellent customer service and am always happy to offer help and advice. To place your order, just send me an email or give me a call on 01280 820593. If you are placing an order of £60 or more, you will receive a Reason to Smile stamp set FREE, in your choice of wood or clear mount. The set is also available to buy for £18.95 wood mount or £14.95 clear mount.

My oldest son has become insatiable when it comes to food! When he was small he ate like a bird and it was a job to get anything into him but now that he's become all manly if there's any food lying about he hoovers it up! My daughter summed it up at dinner the other evening. "I swear you only have two moods," she told him. "Hungry or stuffed!"

See you tomorrow!

Reason to Smile - a shapely card!

Today I'm using the daisy-style flower in the Reason to Smile set. I love the way it can be a different flower depending on how you colour it and today mine is dressed up as a sunflower! Come and see:

I'm not a huge fan of shaped cards as a rule, but I've found the Adorning Accents edgelits great for adding interesting shape with the minimum of fuss. The inside of the card is lined with the subtle text paper from the Patterns stack and my message can be written on the inside of the shaped section.

I stamped my flower head twice, cutting one out with my sharp paper snips and just the centre part of the other before stacking them up with dimensionals. The flower stalk is a strip of Always Artichoke card stock and the matching leaf was cut out using my 2 step bird punch. The sentiment, stamped along the line of the stalk, is from the Thank You Kindly set.

Here's what you'll need to make today's card:

Stamps: Reason to Smile (available during August only), Thank You Kindly

Ink:  Daffodil Delight, More Mustard, Early Espresso

Card stock: Whisper White, Always Artichoke

Other: Patterns designer paper, 2 step bird punch, Adorning Accents edgelits, paper snips, stamp-a-majig

I'd be delighted to order any of these items for you and can have them delivered to your address in the UK. I'm committed to providing excellent customer service and am always happy to offer help and advice. To place your order, just send me an email or give me a call on 01280 820593. If you are placing an order of £60 or more, you will receive a free Reason to Smile stamp set in your choice of wood or clear mount. If you prefer, you can buy the set for £18.95 wood mount or £14.95 clear mount.

Although I have lots of projects scheduled, I'm in and out at the moment so do please forgive my lack of commenting. Over dinner yesterday I was telling my family about a trip to London I'd be making. "I'll be staying overnight," I told them, "and I'll see you sometime the next day." My youngest son immediately wanted to know WHAT time next day. "I don't really know," I said. "It depends what happens!" He nodded. "Oh I see, you might get caught in traffic!" I smiled. "Well, since I'll be taking the train, I don't think so!" He suddenly became quite animated. "Well, there was that time in Thomas the Tank Engine," he said, "where one of the trains was naughty and got bricked up in a siding!" Oh dear, British Rail might not be entirely reliable but I hadn't thought of that!

Have a wonderful weekend and I'll see you soon,

Reason to Smile - in three minutes!

It's Three Minute Thursday here today and I've reached for my Reason to Smile stamp set to make a quick card. Come and have a look:

Look what happens when you stamp the large flower outline image over and over, allowing the petals to overlap! I used a colour combination suggested by my Colour Coach - Baja Breeze, River Rock and Bravo Burgundy - who'd have thought?!

I finished the card with two lines drawn with a marker and a ruler, this gorgeous flourishing sentiment from Thank You Kindly and a trio of pearls. What a quick and easy card and I'm already thinking of other colour schemes to make it in!

Here's what you'll need to make today's card:

Stamps: Reason to Smile (available during August only), Thank You Kindly

Ink:  Baja Breeze, River Rock, Bravo Burgundy

Card stock: Early Espresso, Whisper White

Other: Bravo Burgundy marker, Basic Pearls, stamp-a-majig

I'd be delighted to order any of these items for you and can have them delivered to your address in the UK. I'm committed to providing excellent customer service and am always happy to offer help and advice. To place your order, just send me an email or give me a call on 01280 820593. If you are placing an order of £60 or more, you will receive a free Reason to Smile stamp set in your choice of wood or clear mount. If you prefer, you can buy the set for £18.95 wood mount or £14.95 clear mount.

It's been a busy few days around here but my youngest son has found time to round up a gang of playmates in our neighbourhood. As I popped out of the back door yesterday, I heard him proudly showing off our cat. "I like your cat," said one of his new friends. "What's his name?"My son was quick to correct him: "It's not a he, it's a she," he said. "Oh," said the boy. "Nice name!" Aren't children wonderfully accepting?!

You may be forgiven for imagining I don't have any other stamps other than Reason to Smile... but I'll show you one more card tomorrow using the set and then I promise I'll move on! See you then!

Get your free Stampin' Up set today!

Yes, August is here and I'm delighted to say the fabulous new 2 step stamping Reason to Smile stamp set is now available - for this month only! You can get it FREE with an order of £60 or more or, if you prefer, you can buy it for £18.95 (wood mount) or £14.95 (clear mount).

I've used the set to make a gift set for a very special lady: at the end of last term, the parents of my youngest son's class clubbed together to get some vouchers for the children's wonderful teacher, and I was asked to make a card and a box to present them in. This is what I came up with:

Reason to Smile is perfect for making floral designs! I zinged this one up by stamping my woodgrain background stamp onto card stock in versamark and clear embossing it, before overstamping with my flowers and a leaf from Happiness Shared and colouring everything.

After cutting the the panel to use on my card I was left with this off-cut so I used it to make a matching envelope...

... and here are the card and envelope together! I needed a box for the vouchers so I stamped another panel...

... and used it to decorate the top of a box which was rustled up in a jiffy with my Simply Scored!

The fabulous ruffled ribbon in Wisteria Wonder was perfect for decorating the sides of the box. In this photo you can see the little indents I make with a circle punch to make it easier to take the lid off, and the little jewellery tag tied on with bakers twine.

The vouchers had come in a plain holder from the store and I used it to make an insert for my box so that I could use the ready-made tabs to hold the vouchers in place.

Here's what you'll need to make today's project:

Stamps: Reasons to Smile (available during August only), Happiness Shared, Tiny Tags, Curly Cute, Woodgrain

Ink:  Concord Crush, Old Olive, Perfect Plum, Wisteria Wonder,

Card stock: Whisper White, Concord Crush

Punches: Jewellery Tag punch, square punch, 3/4" circle punch
Other: Markers, versamark, clear embossing powder, heat tool, Simply Scored, stamp-a-majig, ruffled ribbon in Wisteria Wonder

I'd be delighted to order any of these items for you and can have them delivered to your address in the UK. I'm committed to providing excellent customer service and am always happy to offer help and advice. To place your order, just send me an email or give me a call on 01280 820593. If you are placing an order of £60 or more, you will receive a free Reason to Smile stamp set in your choice of wood or clear mount.

Yesterday we celebrated my lovely eldest son's 14th birthday. We ate out at his favourite 'eat as much as you like' buffet restaurant, although unfortunately he had cricked his neck so was in quite a bit of pain. He thanked us at the end of the evening but apologised for not doing justice to the food. "I only had five platefuls," he said, shaking his head regretfully.

It's Three Minute Thursday here tomorrow and I'll have a very quick card for you. See you then!

Reason to smile - a free Stampin' Up set!

Why wouldn't you smile when you can get a gorgeous new stamp set to play with and it can be FREE with an order of £60 or more starting from tomorrow! I've thoroughly enjoyed seeing what I can do with my Reason to Smile set - here's my fourth sample:

Here I stamped two of the profile flower, using the outline stamp only, and coloured them in using Watercolour Wonder crayons, a marker and a blender pen. The background came next - green inks were dabbed over the top using a textured bit of sponge (the crayon does resist the ink a little). To make the third flower turn the other way, I stamped it on a scrap of card stock, coloured it and then cut it out with my sharp paper snips, separating the head from the stem; the stem was simply turned upside down and the head repositioned on top.

Here's a close up of those pretty flowers tied up with a piece of the gorgeous organdie ribbon that you get can get free THIS month. (Today is your last chance to get your hands on this wonderful freebie, two full reels of ribbon and a pot of fabulous brads FREE with orders of £45 or more!)

Banner sentiments are all the rage at the moment - I made mine by cutting a strip of card stock with my trimmer, stamping the sentiment using a stamp-a-majig and snipping ribbon tails in each end with a square punch.

Here's the gorgeous Reason to Smile stamp set I've been using (right) and yes, I'm a wood mount kind of a girl!

Here's what you'll need to make today's card:
Stamps: Reasons to Smile (available during August only), Thank You Kindly

Ink:  Wild Wasabi, Lucky Limeade

Card stock: Whisper White

Other: Watercolour Wonder Crayons, markers, square punch, stamp-a-majig, free brads/ribbon set

I'd be delighted to order any of these items for you and can have them delivered to your address in the UK. I'm committed to providing excellent customer service and am always happy to offer help and advice. To place your order, just send me an email or give me a call on 01280 820593. Your free brad and ribbon set will be added automatically to any order of £45 or more - and TODAY IS THE LAST DAY OF THIS PROMOTION!

It's not blazingly hot here in Buckingham but it's still pretty bright with only the odd light shower. Certainly hot enough for ice cream to still be on the menu and for a visit to the local swimming pool. I remember when my husband used to take the children to the pool; the eldest two used to take their towels along in ruck sacks on their backs and my youngest son, who at age 4 wanted to be just like them but couldn't manage a huge towel, found a tiny, transparent, toy back pack to wear on his back. There was just room to put his tiny pair of pants inside - perfectly visible because the bag was clear!

It's the launch of the new promotion tomorrow and I've used Reason to Smile to make a pretty coordinating gift set - don't miss it will you!