Eleanor's Birthday Wishes

Another lovely colour combo, this time at Just Add Ink . I couldn't resist taking part this week and it was time to use some oldies (but goodies) so I've pulled Everything Eleanor and Petite Pairs from my shelf. I kept the design simple with a scroll and three blossoms, all stamped with Momento Black Ink. I coloured the blooms with an Aquapainter and ink squeezed from the ink pad into the lid. I haven't fussed with it too much so the Momento Ink hasn't run, thank goodness! You really should use Stazon when water is involved. The stamens were simply coloured with the Crushed Curry Stampin' Write Marker.



I knew I had some DSP featuring Crushed Curry, it is the recently retired Eastern Elegance. I cut a cap for the top of the card using the largest Deco Label Framelit, and tied some Bermuda Bay ribbon over the top. I left enough ribbon to tie a bow, but I am the World's worst bow-tyer so I gave up and snipped the ribbon shorter. The middle, larger flower has been fussy cut and raised on a Dimensional. I used a bone folder to curl the petals slightly.



The inside of the card has a layer of Eastern Elegance DSP although I did cover it somewhat with the Whisper White panel. There's another of the large flowers from Everything Eleanor stamped inside, and plenty of room for a handwritten message.





A lovely sunny Saturday in Melbourne, hope it's pleasant where you live ,

Rachel

Everything Eleanor Wood Stamp Set

$63.95

Everything Eleanor Clear Stamp Set

$50.95

Petite Pairs Wood Stamp Set

$49.95

Petite Pairs Clear Stamp Set

$39.95

Card Stock A4 Bermuda Bay

$11.95

Bermuda Bay Classic Stampin' Pad

$9.95

Regals Stampin' Write Markers

$49.95

Bermuda Bay 1/8" Taffeta Ribbon

$9.95

Aqua Painters

$19.95

Deco Labels Framelits Die

$42.95

Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad

$9.95

Table by StampinBuddy. Try it FREE.

Awesome...Thanks for Spring

Oh boy! this ended up being a tricky challenge. Maybe its because our seasons are the opposite and while the northern hemisphere anticipates Spring, we are in the midst of Autumn, and dreading Winter. It was not the sketch so much, but the combination of the sketch and colours. I'm also having heaps of trouble with the lighting for photography, so I've put two photos up, using two different lighting arrangements. Not totally happy with either option.
 The base and panel remained fairly standard all through my design process, but I've stamped numerous images and cut out many shapes before I settled on this one.
The end result is a label cut with a Chalk Talk Framelit and mounted on a black Scalloped Tag Topper piece. First it was stamped with leaves from Summer Silhouette stamp set, then Awesome.... Thanks! is from Yippee-Skippee. A few small flowers from Summer Silhouette were stamped in Coastal Cabana and Mambo Melon and one of the InColor button embellishments in Coastal Cabana topped the left corner of the tag. I do like the way the tag turned out, Summer Silhouette is one of my favourite stamp sets.

The DSP is Eastern Elegance and a few more flower blossoms were stamped onto the Melon Mambo card base.

Many thanks to the design teams that organise these challenges, without you I don't know what I'd do for inspiration!
Try Stamping On Tuesday for the sketch,( and I managed to add blossoms too!)
Sunday Stamps for the  spring color palette: Melon Mambo, Coastal Cabana and Black.

Thanks for popping by, leave a message if you like, I love to read your comments.

Rachel
Happy news for me again, made the top 3 at Try Stamping On Tuesday, thank you, its such a thrill!

Peaceful Thoughts Of You FMS 134

I've decided that Bermuda Bay must be my all-time favourite colour! I do seem to use it such a lot, and I am always happy with the cards I make in that hue, more so than any other.

The rumour mill has been working overtime since some Stampin' Up! demonstrators in the US collected their new catalogues this week. There is a whisper about that Peaceful Petals didn't make the cut for the next catalogue, so if you love it as much as I do, you'll need to order before the end of the Occasions Catalogue (30 June for Australia). Now, I have to say, I was surprised, as it has some lovely floral images, just perfect for watercolouring, as I did, with this stem of small flowers. I used the Aqua painter and a small amount of ink squeezed onto the lid.
There's a hint of Bermuda Bay on the petals, Pistachio Pudding on the leaves and stem and then I used the thick end of a Stampin' Write Marker to place some Crushed Curry in the centres.

The patterned paper is gorgeous, Eastern Elegance Designer Series Paper comes in Smokey Slate, Coastal Cabana and Crushed Curry and this was such a nice 'understated' pattern. Of course, all the DSP retires at the end of each catalogue, so that will be going too.

Itty Bitty Shapes Punch Pack (118309), the two floral shapes and one tiny circle are on the US retired list too. I can't imagine what we'll do without them. I trimmed the strip of Whisper White card that has been embossed with  Modern Mosaic Embossing Folder. At least that seems to be staying for another year.

What a nice 'clean' sketch Karren has provided for the challenge at Freshly Made Sketches. I used the Circles Collection Framelits to cut the white circle and the large scalloped circle is from that set too. It stays too, Yay!

We're really settling into Autumn here now, and it has been raining and rather chilly as I write my blog. I was very glad I did all my shopping earlier when it was still fine. Looking forward to catching up with friends tonight.

Rachel

Heartfelt Sympathy HSS#184 & DD#100

Aren't these colours for Triple Treat Week at Dynamic Duos so soft and soothing? They would make a lovely birthday or new arrival card, but I have chosen to make another sympathy card. What is sad is that this 100th challenge is the very last challenge for the team at Dynamic Duos. While I haven't entered every week, I frequently use the suggested colour pairs as a reference point.

My other inspiration this week is this sketch for Hand Stamped Sentiments. This is such a sweet sketch, and I decided to use some leaves from the Peaceful Petals stamp set. Shelli's favourite Postage Stamp Punch teamed with a 1" Square Punch are a perfect pair. Eastern Elegance DSP has a lovely Smokey Slate paper for the background. A couple of the DD Design team also used this same paper and as we near the end of the catalogue, these papers will retire,and new exciting ones will replace them. I took the sentiment from Simply Sketched, a hostess stamp set. This stamp set will soon be retired also, as Hostess sets only exist for the life of a catalogue, whether it be a mini catalogue or the annual catalogue. It also has a leafy branch that I could have used instead of Peaceful Petals.

Wishing you a peaceful week
Rachel
Remembering my dear mother, Judith 01.10.1926-30.04.2009