Less is More Challenge #384

Good morning

Starting over at Less is More today we have a Colour challenge for you.  I'll get straight to it and show you the cue card...

As always, please ensure your entries are clean and simple.

Our generous Sponsor for this month is Happy Little Stampers so please do play along in our November challenges to be in with a chance of winning a prize.

Joining us as a Guest Designer this week we have the wonderful Angie of Cimba Creative Fun.  She was our September winner and is a regular participant at Less is More.  Please do pop over and take a look at her gorgeous card for our colour challenge theme.

Right, onto my cards, and I have two for you this time.  Here's the first, using copper, gold and silver and stamps by our fabulous sponsor...

For this card I chose a teal coloured base and used that for my stamped panel too.  I used metallics for the rest of the design.  I began by first stamping the holly and heat embossing with copper embossing powder, then stamped the berries, added the embossing powder and brushed away any parts of the image which crossed over onto the holly before also heat embossing in copper.  I then painted the images using a mix of mica powder and water in silver and gold.  I then stamped and heat embossed the sentiment in silver before die cutting with a pierced square die.  Something else was needed so I die cut the same square from some gold cardstock and offset the panels before popping up on 3D foam.

Materials used:

• Stamps: Happy Little Stampers - Merry Kissmas
• Ink: VersaMark
• Embossing Powder: Wow! - Copper, Metallic Silver
• Mica Powder: Honey Doo Crafts - Silver Sparkle; Ranger Perfect Pearls - Heirloom Gold
• Die: MFT Die-namics - Pierced Squares Stax
• Cardstock from stash

Challenge entries:

Addicted to Stamps and More - Challenge #317 - Make Your Mark (painted with mica powders)

Stamping Sensations - November Challenge - Get Ready for Christmas

Happy Little Stampers - November Christmas Challenge - Anything Goes (CAS)

My second card is one I recently made for my boyfriend's parents who were celebrating their Golden Wedding Anniversary...

For the main panel I ran this through my Big Shot using a great little embossing folder.  It creates a horizontal banner towards the top and an embossed heart and a border along the bottom.  I heat embossed the sentiment in gold and attached the panel to a slightly larger piece of textured gold cardstock flat on the card base.  I mixed some transparent texture paste with gold glitter and spread this through a heart stencil and left it to dry before die cutting with a stitched heart.  I cut the same heart from the same gold cardstock I adhered to the base.  All that was left to do was adhere the hearts, one popped up on 3D foam, and a little bow made from gold organza ribbon.

Materials used:

• Embossing Folder:  Xcut - Banner
• Stamps: Uniko - Flower Power #7
• Ink: VersaMark
• Embossing Powder: Wow! - Metallic Gold Rich
• Die: MFT Die-namics - Stitched Heart Stax
• Stencil: Skull and Cross Buns - Brush Hearts
• Texture Paste: Ranger - Translucent Matte
• Accents: Nuvo Glitter - Light Gold
• Ribbon and cardstock from stash 

Thanks so much for visiting today.  My teamies have some great examples which you can find over on the main Less is More challenge page, here.  So, unless you're super organised (unlike me!) why not use this challenge to add some Christmas cards to your stash using metallics?  I really must get a wriggle on with mine, time seems to be passing so fast, Santa will be on his sleigh before I know it!

Skull and Cross Buns - Holly Background.....and Black Friday Weekend Reductions!

Hi there

I've had a crafty afternoon today making cards using another batch of lovely rubber stamps from Skull & Cross Buns.  I'll be sharing these in the next few posts.

Before I get to my first card I just wanted to share that there are some great deals over at the store for Black Friday weekend which you can find here.

Emily is offering some great reductions, including her fabulous personalised stamps, so please don't miss out on the reduced prices.


Ok, for this card I used the Holly and Berries set of 2 rubber stamps to create by background panel.

On a panel of white cardstock slightly small than the base I randomly stamped the holly leaves and berries with pigment ink.  These stamps give such a crisp image, the rubber is fabulous quality.  I then mixed some gold mica powder with some water and added some splatters all over the panel.  I finished with a sentiment heat embossed in gold on a vellum strip wrapped around the panel, before adhering the panel flat to the card base.

Materials used:

• Stamps: Skull and Cross Buns - Holly and Berries; Clearly Besotted - Scrumptious Script
• Ink: Versa Color - Evergreen, Camellia; VersaMark
• Embossing Powder: Wow! - Metallic Gold Rich
• Mica Powder: Perfect Pearls - Heirloom Gold
• Vellum from stash

Challenge entries:

Crimbo Crackers - Challenge #146 - Anything Goes

Uniko - Challenge #44 - Christmas

Just Add Ink - Challenge #387 - Colour Challenge

Creative Inspirations - Challenge #283 - Sparkle

Thanks so much for stopping by, there will be a few more post to follow as I share more of the Skull and Cross Buns Christmas stamps.

Back soon.

Better Later than Never - Stencilled Bloom for Mother's Day

Hi guys

I've just been sorting through some card photos on my laptop and found two cards I've not yet shared here on my blog, both from months ago!

So, better late than never, here's the first.  This was the card I made for my boyfriend's mum back in March! 

This was a quick and easy make.  On a panel of white cardstock I stencilled the flower using three shades of Distress Ink.  I then stamped the sentiment in black ink.  To finish I mixed Perfect Pearls with some water and used a brush to splatter it over the design.  The panel was trimmed down and adhered to the base on fun foam.

Materials used:

• Stencil: Stamposaurus - no name on packaging
• Ink: Distress Ink - Dusty Concord, Seedless Preserves, Picked Raspberry; Versafine - Onyx Black
• Stamp: Clearly Besotted - Framed Sentiments
• Accents: Perfect Pearls - Blush

Challenge entries:

Addicted to Stamps and More - Challenge #261 - Anything Goes

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Anything Goes

ETA:
Linking up at Inspired by All the Little Things #66 - Thanks for the heads up, Ardyth!

I'll be straight back in a few minutes to share the other card whose photo has also been lost in my laptop since June!

Happy Little Stampers December 2016 CAS Challenge

Hi there

And welcome to a new CAS Challenge at Happy Little Stampers.  For this challenge we would like you to revisit your favourite technique or product from any of the previous 2016 CAS Challenges.

This challenge is sponsored by Happy Little Stampers and as always there's a prize for one lucky winner...

Over on the main challenge blog, here, we have included a list of all the previous challenges to refresh your memory, together with links if you need help with the techniques.

One of my favourite techniques is Ghosting.  Stencils are inexpensive so are great to add to your stash without breaking the bank. Here's my DT card, I decided to add another to my Christmas card collection and used one of the stamp sets from the lastest HLS release, Christmas Joy... 

On a piece of white cardstock I blended an area with Distress Ink in Festive Berries.  I then laid the holly stencil over it, spritzed with water, removed the stencil before leaving for a few moments and blotting away the colour with the paper towel.  I then flicked some splatters over it with a mix of perfect pearls and water.  Once completely dry I die cut a section of the red panel with a stitched tag die.  I then stamped and heat embossed the sentiment in silver.  I stamped the holly images onto the card base in silver pigment ink and coloured the berries with a coloured pencil.  Finally, I tied some ribbon and thread through the tag before adhering the tag using some fun foam.

Materials used:

• Ink: Distress Ink - Festive Berries; VersaMark; Versa Color - Silver
• Stencil: Tim Holtz - Festive
• Die: MFT Die-namics - Stitched Traditional Tag Stax
• Stamps: Happy Little Stampers - Christmas Joy
• Accents: Perfect Pearls - Pewter; Derwent Coloursoft pencils; ribbon and thread from stash

Challenge entries:

Time Out - Challenge #71 - Christmas with Optional twist of Glitter/Shimmer
Moving Along with the Times - Challenge #34 - Anything Christmas

Uniko - Challenge #38 - Christmas
Addicted to Stamps and More - Challenge #222 - Make Your Mark (sponging and stencilling)
Creative Inspirations - Challenge #263 - Christmas Creations
The Crafter's Cafe - Challenge #162 - Christmas and/or Birthday

I'm looking forward to seeing lots of these great techniques in the gallery, so why not join in!  The challenge will run until the end of December, and don't forget to check out the rest of the HLS challenges, all starting in the next few days.