• Center Stage Stamping

osat blog hop: new review

Hello, friends! It is time for this month’s One Stamp At A Time Blog Hop! June is always a fun month as the NEW Stampin’ Up! catalog is released. That means loads of fun new stamp sets and other goodies to create with. It only seems right that this month’s OSAT theme is a New Review. I can’t wait to see what exciting new products the design team has chose to spotlight!

I chose to use a new stamp set called Tasteful Touches and a new die from the Forever Fern die set. This fun card and gift bag duo would brighten anyone’s day!

I just love the vintage/country look I was able to achieve. I stamped one of the background images from the set repeatedly to cover the tag and card base. stamping a few times before re-inking helped create depth and shading, although it is hard to see in the photos. I think it gives a vintage wallpaper look. Card base and tag were also splattered with gold shimmer paint.

The leaves were cut out of vellum. It gives a nice soft layer of texture without adding more color. The flower petals are colored with Flirty Flamingo Stampin’ Blends, with a little Petal Pink for highlights, center is Mango melody and Daffodil Delight.

This stamp set is going to be a lot of fun to work with! Now, go see what the rest of the design team has in store. And start making your wish list! PLEASE CLICK THE BLUE BOX FOR A POP UP LIST OF THE DESIGN TEAM.

Thanks for stopping by! Join me again to shine a spotlight on creativity!

new level of wonderful

Hello crafty friends! Do you ever feel like your creativity has run off no where to be found? I think we all have those moments. Playing along with a challenge is a fun way to get things flowing. Speaking of a challenge…

Paper Craft Crew Challenges has a new challenge out. This week it’s a fun sketch to work with.

Card sketches are a great way to jumpstart your creativity. You can create the sketch exactly as it is, or use it a starting point and let your creativity take over. Here is my take on this sketch.

I used the new Celebrate Sunflowers set. The flower is colored with Stampin’ Blends markers. This card also uses two of the new In Colors the three little enamel dots are Bumble Bee – a gorgeous yellow, and the scalloped frame is Misty Moonlight – a lovely blue. I really like this sentiment. It could be used for many occasions, but I think it is a great way to wish someone a Happy Birthday!

I hope you will join in and play along with this fun sketch. Then head over to the Paper Craft Crew blog and link your card to share with the crew.

Thanks for stopping by! Join me again to shine a spotlight on creativity.

I love a good challenge

Hello friends! I have some exciting news – I have joined the Paper Craft Crew Challenges Design Team!

Each week the Paper Craft Crew puts out a new crafty challenge: a card sketch, color combo, inspiration photo or tic tac toe, etc and invites paper crafters to join the challenge and create something fun! The Design Team kicks things off to give you all some added inspiration. I was honored the PCC Team coordinator, and my friend, Pam asked me to join. I love a good challenge and I look forward to the creativity ahead.

Today’s challenge is this fun inspiration photo:

After staring at the photo for awhile, I asked myself – What do I like about the picture? I like the white space with bold pops of color and the aqua, bright pink and orange colors. I also like the single flower focal point. Here is how I put those elements together.

I opted to put the flower focal point on the opposite side of the card because of the natural bend the stamped image had. I used an embossing folder to give some texture and depth to the background taken from the out of focus background in the inspiration photo. (sneak peek of the Old World Paper 3D folder and new In Color Magenta Madness from the NEW 2020-21 Stampin’ Up! catalog!)

Check out the Paper Craft Crew Challenges blog and join the fun! Create your own project and share it in the PCC#379 post. Challenges are open for one week. Who knows, you may even be a Top Pick!

I’m so glad you stopped by! Please join me again to shine a spotlight on creativity!

osat blog hop: manly may

Hello my crafty friends! Welcome to the monthly One Stamp at a Time Blog Hop! This month our theme is cards/ projects for men. I have to admit, these kind of projects don’t come easy for me. I tend to work in more florals and softer colors with ribbon and bling. But, I also love a challenge. Here is what I came up with.

A fun Father’s Day card and gift box for a car lovin’ guy. My color scheme is Basic Black, Basic Gray, Real Red, Pumpkin Pie, and Crushed Curry.

I used the die cut gears to help add some texture and detail. On the box, I did add one of the wrenches from the Classic Garage Metal embellishments on the box. Otherwise, it is just stamps, ink and paper.

If you are ready to go check out the rest of the stops on the blog hop, PLEASE CLICK THE BLUE BOX FOR A POP UP LIST OF THE DESIGN TEAM.

Thanks for stopping by! Join me again to shine a spotlight on creativity!

stamp review crew: painted poppies

Hello crafty friends! I’m so happy to be hopping with the super creative Stamp Review Crew Design Team! Today we are shining a spotlight on Painted Poppies. This beautiful set is in the current Stampin’ Up! mini catalog and is part of a beautiful suite of products, including coordinating dies and some gorgeous designer series paper.

For stamp sets that are part of a product suite like this, I try to create a project or two not using any of the coordinating products. It helps me find more versatility in the stamp set. That’s what I did for today’s projects.

For this first card, I did a simple watercolor smooshing to create a background to stand out against images stamped in black.

I used Cherry Cobbler, Terracotta Tile and Crushed Curry Stampin’ Write markers and scribbled them on my silicon mat. Next I spritzed the mat with water and laid my Whisper White (thick) panel on to pick up the color. This technique works better with watercolor paper, but I wanted a smooth surface. You do have to be careful not to over saturate the Whisper White card stock or it will pill. Let the panel completely dry before stamping the image in Memento Black ink.

My second card uses a much bolder color scheme. I started by stamping the flower images in VersaMark ink and embossing them with white embossing powder on watercolor paper.

I did a watercolor wash across the panel, doing one color section at a time. Be sure to let dry between colors to control color bleeding. I used Daffodil Delight, Lovely Lipstick, Pumpkin Pie, Pretty Peacock, Gorgeous Grape, and Coastal Cabana. The card base was embossed with the Brick&Mortar 3D embossing folder. I painted the grout lines with a light wash of Smokey Slate to help create additional depth. The sentiment is from Very Versailles stamp set.

Thanks for stopping by! Be sure to check out the full blog hop for more inspirational projects featuring this beautiful stamp set! You can head on over to the talented Cindy by clicking on the NEXT button below or you can go back to the creative Nikki by clicking on the PREVIOUS button.

Thanks for stopping by! Join me again to shine a spotlight on creativity!

stamp review crew: bonanza buddies

Hello friends! The Stamp Review Crew is together again for another blog hop! I love hoping with these talented artists. It is so much fun to see how everyone works with a certain stamp set. Loads of inspiration! Today we shine a spotlight on the super fun Bonanza Buddies stamp set.

This set has some adorable critters in it and they are tons of fun to work with. But, for my card for today’s blog hop I decided to focus on other images in the set and use them in a different way. These shapes are meant to be gifts, balloons, and party hats. But, I think they also make a great geometric background.

Color scheme is Coastal Cabana, Bermuda Bay, Granny Apple Green, Grapefruit Grove, and Basic Black.

Look beyond the basic use of an image and let your creativity soar!

Now, go check out what the rest of the Crew has to inspire you. You can head over to Lou by clicking the NEXT button below or you can go back to Holly by clicking on the PREVIOUS button.

Thanks for stopping by! Join me again to shine a spotlight on creativity!

osat blog hop: chick ewe out

Hello friends! It is time for the monthly One Stamp At A Time Blog Hop. This month’s hop is an animal theme and the OSAT Design Team has some fun projects in store. Be sure to make your way through the complete blog hop roster. You don’t want to miss anything!

Last month I received the BEST Valentine gift ever. My first Grandchild was born!!! She has completely stolen my heart.

So naturally with baby on my mind, I create a couple of fun projects to welcome a sweet little girl.

I just adore this sweet little bunny from the Fable Friends stamp set. Reminds me so much of Peter Rabbit. Paired with the Beautiful Bouquet background stamp and some sweet Blushing Bride gingham DSP, you end up with a perfect gift pair.

I colored the little bunny with my Stampin’ Blends. I love the shading you can get. The Beautiful Bouquet is stamped with white ink on a Gray Granite card base. I sponged Pool Party ink on the oval with the sentiment to achieve a lighter shade of Pool Party. Isn’t he adorable peeking out from the heart opening?

I made a little gift box using one of the Mini Pizza Boxes. I stamped the Beautiful Bouquet in Gray Granite ink. I also used the heart cut out from the card. The “baby” is cut out of Whisper White card stock and sponged with Pool Party ink for a soft shade to match the oval on the card.

Thanks for stopping by. I am going back to staring at photos of my sweet little Granddaughter!

Be sure to check out what the rest of the Design Team has created! You can find a pop up full blog hop roster by clicking on the BLUE RECTANGLE below.

Thanks for stopping by. Join me again to shine a spotlight on creativity!

stamp review crew: honey bee

Hello friends! I am excited to be hopping once again with the Stamp Review Crew. If you are not familiar with The Stamp Review Crew, we are a group of international Stampin’ Up! Demonstrators who hop together on the first and third Monday of the month to bring you some great inspiration. Each blog hop features a different stamp set. You can find all of the blog hops archived on the Stamp Review Crew blog. Today we are shining a spotlight on the Honey Bee stamp set.

This stamp set is so much fun to work with. For my first card, I was inspired by one of my favorite Disney characters with a love for Hunny – Winnie the Pooh! I was thinking about the scene where he gets stuck in the honey tree and honey is dripping all around him.

I created a Crushed Curry watercolor wash to try to create a similar look.

I added a couple of bees, some Golden Honey DSP and some die cut honey comb for added texture.

My second project continues the dripping honey theme.

This time I added the panel to a card base embossed with the Corrugated 3D emboss folder.

I think that Silly Ol’ Bear would approve, don’t you? Time for you to continue your way to more creative inspiration through the blog hop. From here you can head over to Linda by clicking the NEXT button below or you can go back to Holly by clicking the PREVIOUS button

Thanks for stopping by! Join me again to shine a spotlight on creativity!

OSAT blog hop: sixteen candles

Welcome to another fantastic blog hop with the talented One Stamp At A Time Design Team! Our theme this month, “Sixteen Candles”, has us creating fun birthday projects. I can’t wait to see what everyone on the team came up with!

As for me, I had some fun playing with the Birthday Bonanza Suite. I love this suite as it works for kids of all ages: 1 to 101! Who wouldn’t love this card and treat bag duo!

This card layout came from the talented Mercedes Weber. I cased a swap card I got from her a couple of years ago. It is a great way to 1. show off multiple patterns in a DSP pack. 2. use up those paper scraps.

I adapted the layout for the treat bag.

The Mango Melody piece is inside the cello bag. The DSP strips, Doily and Toucan are on the outside. Lots of possibilities for this adorable little bag!

Be sure to check out the great Birthday creations from the rest of the OSAT design team. You can find the full blog roll call by clicking on the BLUE rectangle below. Be sure to make your way through the full blog hop. You don’t want to miss any of the amazing talent that awaits you.

Thanks for stopping by! Join me again to shine a spotlight on creativity!

stamp review crew: forever blossoms

Hello crafty friends and welcome to another Stamp Review Crew blog hop! Taking the stage today is the beautiful Forever Blossoms form the Mini Catalog. I believe the large sprig is a cherry blossom. (I’m guessing based on the fact that Cherry Blossoms is the coordinating die set.)

I started with a color scheme of various shades of pink. I used Petal Pink, Flirty Flamingo, Melon Mambo, and Lovely Lipstick. For the first card, I started with a water color wash for the back ground. I added a little Daffodil Delight and Calypso Coral for more color depth.

Once the water color was completely dry, I stamped the flower sprig in black ink and added some white accents with a white color pencil. Then I colored the petal with some Wink of Stella for a delicate shimmer. The card base is stamped with All Wired Up in Flirty Flamingo.

For the second card, I glued down strips of card stock for an ombre look. I heat embossed the flowers in white and colored them in with the same color Stampin’ Write markers to make them stand out. This panel was then stamped with the Crackle background using VersaMark ink for a subtle background. I added Wink of Stella to the flowers for sparkle and cut the panel with a stitched rectangle die. The sentiment is on one of the Stitched So Sweetly dies with a little glimmer paper for more sparkle. Finished off with some vellum sprigs and a few rhinestones.

I love the delicate sparkle on these cards. It’s really giving me some springtime vibes. Sigh. That’s a long way off. Let’s go see what the rest of the design team has in store for this beautiful set! You can head over to Ann by clicking on the NEXT button below or go back to Lauren by clicking the PREVIOUS button.

Thanks for stopping by! Join me again to shine a spotlight on creativity!