Happy Birthday Mambo Curry! RS#115

I've been too busy to make any cards for a little while, but after work last night I made an effort to put together a card for RetroSketches. It's such a cute sketch, but I found deciding colours a bit tricky today.                                                                      
 I wonder what you think of Crushed Curry and Melon Mambo?

I used Peaceful Petals stamp set for the flower, Happy Watercolor for the splodges and spots and Petite Pairs for the 'happy birthday wishes'. Peaceful Petals and Happy Watercolor are in the Occasions Catalogue and it finishes in Australia at the end of June, so if you need these stamp sets, you'll need to order them soon. Petite Pairs is one of the staple greeting stamp sets: something for every occasion and you can use just one part, or two, of the pair.
I used non-Stampin' Up! rhinestones this time, but when we receive the Blendabilities, we will be able to color rhinestones, pearls etc. to match our projects. I wonder if we will see them at Convention this week?

I leave for the South Pacific Stampin' Up! Convention today, Shelli and Sterling have arrived, Bonnie has been here since Monday, I think. There are demonstrators from all over Australia and New Zealand streaming into town and we are all set to have a ball in beautiful Melbourne. It's the end of Autumn and we have had 10 days in a row over 20° (that's 68°F)and the sun is shining brightly on our city today!

I'm not sure that I will be able to update posts while I am away at Convention, but I have a couple of posts scheduled to be released while I'm away, so feel free to pop back in the next couple of days.
Have a great week

Rachel

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