Less is More Challenge #457 ... and some news

Good morning

It's Saturday and time for a new challenge over at Less is More.  The Design Team will be taking a short break throughout December so this will be the last challenge of 2021.

...and it is with a heavy heart that after six and a half years (how is it that long?!!!) I have decided to step down from this fabulous challenge Design Team.

After a few weeks as a Guest Designer, I joined the team in May 2015 (Challenge #225!), creating alongside the wonderful Chrissie, Sarah and Anne.  I had the pleasure of meeting these gorgeous ladies at a Craft Retreat a few years ago organised by our amazing Kylie, and later met the lovely Sharon, who has been running the challenge brilliantly in the most recent years.  They are all such great friends and will continue to be beyond Less is More.  And, of course, not forgetting my other LIM teamies past and present, I've learned so much from a fantastic bunch of CAS designers so I'm sending a huge thank you to all of you.

I won't be disappearing, I just feel like I need to have some time without the commitments and deadlines of a Design Team.  I would like to find more time to use my stash and just play!  

Ok, enough of the sadness, here's the info for the new challenge...

Image by monicore from Pixabay

Here's my card, I think you can see how I was inspired by the photo!

I began with a die cut panel of kraft cardstock.  I then grabbed some paper that has been in my stash for many many years, I think it was part of a bigger kit.  The red paper is shimmery and has a kind of jacquard pattern/print on it.  I used a stitched die to add the dash lines and then cut into a couple of strips.  I then used a bow die set and cut this from the same paper.  I die cut some pine needles from white glitter cardstock and a little tag from white card and stamped the sentiment.  It was then just a case of positioning and adhering.  I originally wasn't going to add the tag as the 'ribbon' already displays the sentiment but I think the tag finishes it off nicely.

You can see the design of the paper a lot clearer in this photo...

Materials used:

• Dies: Create a Smile - Cool Cuts Double Stitched Rectangles; Paper Smooches - Dots and Dashes; Frantic Stamper - Small Solid Bow; Marianne Design Creatables - Petra's Larix Larch; MFT Die-namics - Blueprints 26 (tag)
• Stamps: The Greetery - Budding Beauties Winter
• Cardstock from stash

Thank you so much, LIMettes, for all your support and encouraging comments on my designs for Less is More.  Clean and simple is the style I love and I also love how this challenge has taken so many of you out of your comfort zones to try CAS designs.  

So this isn't goodbye, I'm sure I'll be a participant of LIM as I always have been since I began this blog xx

Less is More Challenge #432

Hi there

It's Colour challenge time over at Less is More and for the next fortnight we have two colour combos for you to choose from...

And as we've entered into a new month, we also have a new sponsor, the wonderfully generous

We also have one of our regular participants joining us as a Guest Designer for this challenge, our August winner, Kathy K!  I'm sure you're all familiar with Kathy's fantastic creations so why not pop over to her blog to say hi and take a look at her card for this colour challenge.

Ok, on to my samples, and I have one of each colour combo for you this time.  First up is the blue and silver...

I die cut a faux stitched rectangle from white cardstock and then also die cut a negative snowflake in the centre of the panel.  Before adhering to the card base on fun foam, I backed the negative snowflake with light blue glitter cardstock.  The central section becomes detached when die cut so I adhered this back in place and accented with a glittered enamel dot.  To finish I stamped and heat embossed the sentiment in silver on a die cut strip and adhered this at the base on a 3D foam strip.

Materials used:

• Dies: Create a Smile - Cool Cuts Double Stitched Rectangles, Negative Snowflake; MFT Die-namics - Stitched Rectangle Stax
• Stamp: Uniko - Snowflake Serenade
• Ink: VersaMark
• Embossing Powder: Wow! - Metallic Silver
• Accent: Doodlebug Sprinkles - Silver

Next up is my red and gold card.  I'm really not sure about this one, I think the photography lets it down as the shiny gold really doesn't translate very well...

I began by using a window die as I figured it would look like a ribbon-trimmed present.  So I cut this from deep red and again from textured gold cardstock.  I adhered the red frame and then pieced in the gold sections.  I used the same red cardstock and die cut it using a bow die set and mounted it onto the present.  I then stamped and heat embossed the sentiment in gold onto a mini tag die cut and tucked this under the bow.  That was going to be my finished card but it just didn't look complete somehow.  So I grabbed a new stencil which I recently purchased which gives a torn edge effect and added some red ink to the top and base.  I'm still not sure about it, but thought I would share it with you all the same.

Materials used:

• Dies: Clearly Besotted - Window Die, Tiny Tags; Frantic Stamper - Small Solid Bow
• Stamp: Uniko - Rustic Wreath
• Ink: VersaMark; Distress Ink - Festive Berries
• Embossing Powder: Wow! - Metallic Gold Rich
• Stencil: Clearly Besotted - Tear Away

Thanks so much for taking a look today.  Hopefully you can join in over the next two weeks.  If, like me, you still need to make your Christmas cards (other than these I've not started yet!) then these colour combos should help you as they are ideal for festive makes.  And there's lots of inspiration from my teamies over at the main blog too.

Seize the Birthday - Surprise Party Guest (week 2)

Hi there

I'm super excited today to have my second spot as a Surprise Party Guest over at Seize the Birthday challenge.  

If you are unfamiliar with this challenge, basically every week is Anything Goes as long as it's a Birthday theme...

and then some weeks have added optional 'Toppings'...

And this week's optional 'Topping' is...

Colour Splash

(Black and White and one other colour of your choice)

Here's my card using this week's Topping...

I stamped the balloon strings background stamp onto a panel of black cardstock with VersaMark ink and heat embossed in clear.  This was adhered to the card base together with a strip of pink polka dot paper.  I die cut the bow from the same patterned paper, adhered it at an angle and finished by stamping the sentiment in black.

Materials used:

• Stamps: MFT - Balloon Strings; Paper Smooches - Bold Buzzwords
• Ink: VersaMark; Versafine - Onyx Black
• Embossing Powder: Wow! - Clear Gloss
• Cardstock/Paper: Papermania - Textured Black; Lawn Fawn - Let's Polka
• Die: Frantic Stamper - Small Solid Bow

Challenge entries:

Seven Hills Crafts - March Tic Tac Toe Challenge - I chose the diagonal option: Patterned Paper / Big Words Letters / Bold Shades

So glad you popped by today, I'm grateful for each and every one of your visits.

CAS with Designer Paper

Hi guys

We've whizzed around to another Saturday morning so it's new challenge time at Less is More.  As there are five Saturdays in April that means this month we have a Lucky Dip challenge for you and our theme is...

Use Designer Paper in a CAS Way

With every Lucky Dip challenge comes a Guest Designer and this week we have one of our fabulous LIMettes, the lovely Esther of The Carnelian Wood.  Esther participates every week and shows so much support by visiting so many of our entries!  It's a pleasure to have you as our Guestie this week, Esther xx


So, this week I have three cards to share with you.  Here's the first...

I wanted to create the look of a wrapped present for this card.  I took some red gingham patterned paper and cut two strips.  I also used a die set to create the bow.  As the bow had a stitched edge detail I used a straight stitched detail die to die cut along both edges of my two strips.  On a white cardstock panel I adhered the two strips and topped with the bow before stamping my sentiment.  The panel was then adhered on 3D foam.  I was really pleased with how this one turned out, it looks so much like gingham ribbon!

Materials used:

• Patterned Paper: Pebbles - Sunny Side
• Dies: Frantic Stamper - Small Solid Bow; Paper Smooches - Stitched
• Stamp: Clearly Besotted - Celebrating You
• Ink; Versafine - Onyx Black

Challenge entries:

613 Avenue Create - Challenge #173 - Anything Goes

Time Out - Challenge #55 - Celebrations with optional twist of die cutting/fussy cutting

I used some digi paper for this next card...

I started by printing the designer paper.  I then cut two strips of white cardstock, and a strip of the paper the same length.  I adhered the paper flat to the cardbase and the two white panels on 3D foam.  I then cut the scribble die cut from some pink cardstock and on a strip of green cardstock heat embossed the sentiment in white.  These were then adhered across the aperture.

Materials used:

• Digi Paper: Pink Petticoat - Perfect Papers
• Stamp: Personal Impressions - Mix & Match
• Ink: VersaMark
• Embosssing Powder: Wow! - Opaque Bright White
• Die: MFT Die-namics - Scribble

Challenge entry:

Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Anything Goes

And a super simple design for my third card...

I die cut the balloon three times from polka dot papers.  I temporarily placed them where I wanted them and stamped the sentiment and strings, then adhered the balloons on 3D foam.

Materials used:

• Die: Clearly Besotted - Make a Wish
• Patterned Paper: Lawn Fawn - Let's Polka
• Stamps: Lawn Fawn - Scripty Sayings
• Ink: Versafine - Onyx Black

Challenge entry:

Seize the Birthday - Anything Goes

I don't use designer paper nearly enough and I have a fair amount piled up in my stash.  But I must say, I thoroughly enjoyed creating these this week.  Why not have a rummage and join in the fun this week!

Addicted to Stamps and More #116

Good morning

Well, here we are, back around to Wednesday again which means that Addicted to Stamps and More has a brand new challenge for you.  And we have an easy peasy one for you this time which is...

Anything Goes!

Go ahead and create using anything you like, we'd love you to share it with us!

Our sponsor this week is Rick St Dennis and the prize being offered to our winner is 3 digis!

Here's my DT card using one of our sponsor's images...

Halloween cards are something I very rarely make and I felt a little out of my comfort zone making this one but on this occasion I thought I'd have a go at colouring this fab little image.  I printed off the digi and coloured it using ProMarkers and FlexMarkers.  Not the best colouring, I really need to build up my collection to give me more shading options!  This was then die cut with a rectangle die and framed with some thick green vellum.  I chose a black card base and stamped some silver stars on one side and then used a silver gelly roll pen to create the vertical line.  I embossed the sentiment in silver on purple cardstock and then had a play with my new bow die in orange to echo the orange bow ties in the image.  I used some dotty embossed card for this to add a bit of interest.  After some popping up on 3D foam my card was finished.

Materials used:

• Digi Image: Rick St Dennis - Flying High
• Stamps: Clearly Besotted - Happy Days and Many Thanks
• Ink: VersaMark; Versa Color - Silver
• Embossing Powder: Rubber Stampede - Silver
• Dies: Spellbinders Nestabilities - Classic Rectangles Large; Frantic Stamper - Small Solid Bow
• Cardstock and vellum from stash
• Coloured with ProMarkers and FlexMarkers

I'd like to enter this card at the following challenge blogs:

A Gem of a Challenge - Challenge #129 - Clean and Simple

Oh La La Creations - Challenge #166 - Use a Bow

{PIN}spirational - Challenge #125 - Any Kind of Project

Without Words - October Challenge - Boo!

My teamies over at ATSM have some great cards to inspire you this week, a lovely mixed bag and as the challenge is 'Anything Goes', why not come and join us and share your creations.

Thanks for visiting, as always :)