Cookie-Cutter Cutie CTC#102

This week at CASE-ing The Catty we are looking at the Halloween section of the Holiday catty, pages 50-55. I'm not really into Halloween cards, but I do like the sketch on page 53 using the little scarecrow from Cookie-Cutter Halloween. For my first card I substituted the gingerbread man from Cookie-Cutter Christmas, equally cute and so easy to punch out with the Cookie Cutter Builder Punch. For this selling period (until January 3rd) you can Bundle & Save 10% by purchasing the Cookie-Cutter Christmas stamps with the Punch using it's special code #143493.

The sentiment and star embellishment both come from Tin Of  Tags stamps, and I'm going to let you in on a little secret. Currently featured on page 33 of the Holiday Catalogue at $37 for this stamp set, through November 1st - 31st you can buy this for $27.75. Several other stamp sets are included in this 25% discount offer, mainly for Christmas.
On my card I've alternated silver and gold star enamel shapes for a touch of bling. Enamel dots in Real Red are on his chest too, and the DSP is from Candy Cane Lane, which is part of the buy three, get one free promotion, ending 31st October. I've re-stocked and can now freely use my pretty patterned papers. I liked the scrap of colour popping out to the left of the scarecrow, and I added a splash of Crushed Curry for added interest.

I haven't used this Cookie-Cutter Christmas stamp set and punch near enough yet, so I am planning a class for November 18th where you'll have the opportunity to make the Double-Z card, and possibly decorate it with some of these cute santas, gingerbread men, reindeer or even the teddy bear. I just need to get busy making the samples. I'm also holding a Quick & Easy Christmas Class on Friday 9th December at 7pm and again on Saturday 10th December at 2pm and those cards are on my class page already.

My next card is what happens when my creativity gets slightly out of hand! Do you ever have those moments? Mostly I'm quite restrained when it comes to embellishments and even layers, I call myself a "clean & layered" crafter, but I do like to push myself beyond my comfort zone. This is one of those cards! It is still based on the same sketch, but wanting to include  Ghoulish Grunge stamps to bring in the Halloween theme, I created some flower stems based on an idea I saw on Maria Willis' blog for What Will You Stamp #84. I had hand cut some flowers stamped on DSP with Love & Affection and liked the way they complemented the background DSP (Serene Scenery)


The sentiment is from Sunburst Sayings, and there is another card featured on page 43 which uses the same drips, and this sentiment. The remainder of the card is finished with some (drips) stems, flowers and a 'happy birthday' stamped straight onto the Crumb Cake card in Dapper Denim.












I really enjoyed making this pair of cards for the challenge this week. Same sketch idea, with quite different results.

Now you are heading off to the talented Kelly Kent in West Australia. I bet she has something to dazzle you.

If you'd like to join in the challenge for October, there is a day or two left. Link up here

Cheers, Rachel

Touch of Texture WWYS#77

Touch of Texture is a beautiful stamp set. You can find it in the 'Artistic Expression' section of your Stampin' Up!® catalogue on page 141. There are 15 red rubber stamps in this set, a great mix of texture and pretty florals, plus a bee and dragonfly. The stamp I really love is the long, lacy stamp.


I will use these as RAK (Random Act Of Kindness) cards, so the sentiment from Love & Affection, 'sending a smile your way' is a perfect choice. It was my first inking up of this gorgeous stamp set, so I cut a number of pieces of white card, and some of my favourite stamps to stamp a variety of images.




I was glad to see that What Will You Stamp? featured Touches of Texture this time, so I could share a couple of my favourites with you. Do you like the Festive Textured Embossing Folder behind the art piece?

If you have been inspired, you can link to the challenge at What Will You Stamp? too, and make sure you check out the design teams creations.

Cheers, Rachel

Going Global Playfully CTC#77

Hello again, so glad you've dropped by to check out what's happening at CASE-ing The Catty. This week the assignment is to CASE Going Global, pages 38-39. It was exciting to see this great suite of products introduced to us by Stampin' Up!®, but unfortunately this masculine set is NOT carrying over into the Annual Catty. If you have men to make cards for, it might be a good idea to take one last look at pages 38-39 to see if you need the stamp set, paper stack or embossing folder.

I decided to share some of the NEW papers coming in the Annual Catalogue (1st June is the big day), but use the Going Global stamps. The design is based on the Black card on the left, above. The paper  I've used is from a Designer Series Paper Stack, 6 inches square, called Playful Palette. It co-ordinates with four of the New InColors, and goes really well with a stamp set called Painter's Palette. I've been having so much fun with these unusual colours & patterns, I've nearly used half the pack already!! 

My friend Kathryn Mangelsdorf was one of the designers who used Painter's Palette for display items at Stampin' Up!® Sydney Onstage last month, and she inspired me so much, I ordered the stamp set straight away. Her name will link you to the blog where Kathryn shares her projects. No doubt you'll meet her as you proceed around this blog hop too. For my Going Global card, I cased a very similar one on page 38, and changed the paper, the ink colour is the NEW Emerald Envy. Instead of ribbon, I used a silver foil banner.

Not content with that, I busted open another 12" X 12" pack of DSP, this one is Affectionately Yours, and it is bright and fresh, in new InColors plus some of last years like Watermelon Wonder and Cucumber Crush. I took two sheets, and cut 2 pieces 5 inches by 3½ inches from each, flipped one and used coordinating card for the sentiment strip, and behind the DSP. There's the two colours I mentioned earlier, and NEW Flirty Flamingo, plus So Saffron for the last one. That piece had so many possible accents, so I just chose something that matched the other shades. I've embossed a piece of Crumb Cake with one of a pair of folders which is part of that range also. I love this folder because there is space for stamping of a banner between the two sprays of flowers. The other embossing folder is very cute too, a couple of flowers and leaves, and the embossing is not at all subtle.

Don't forget to hop around to see what magic Monique has to share with us, or pop back to Rebecca

Cheers, Rachel

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