CTC #500 - CASE Either Catalogue Any Project

Welcome to another week at CASEing the Catty Sunday Blog Hop, where utilise the projects within the current Stampin' Up! catalogue to inspire our own projects each week. We also invite you to join with us in the challenge each week by using this inspiration in your own creations and uploading a photo to our Facebook page.

Wow, I can't believe we are up to our 500th challenge!!! It just goes to show how much inspiration there is within the pages of the Stampin' Up! catalogues.  I am proud to say that I have been part of the Design Team from the very first challenge on 18 July 2014, at that time we used to have a dedicated blog with links to each DT member.  

This is my project from the very first challenge "Gift and Packaging", it is fun to see how stamping tends and my own style have changed over the intervening years. It is also great to appreciate the range of talented demonstrators who have been part of the design team over the last 10 years. To help celebrate we put out the invitation to them to join us as guest designers for this challenge, so please be sure to hop all the way around to see what inspired each of them.

Now onto the actual 500th challenge! This week we are taking inspiration from any project in either of the two current catalogues, literally so much to choose from there has to be something that catches your eye.

I was inspired by this card from page 51 of the Holiday Catalogue, I really love the Winterly Tree Tops bundle and loved the idea of using the Brushed Gold cards as a background. Unfortunately I couldn't find where I have stored my cards and envelops so had to get a bit more creative. 

Not to be deterred I was drawn to a sheet from the Oxidized Copper Specialty DSP, and while I knew it would look great paired with Pretty Peacock, I wanted to try something a little different to allow me to create an almost monochromatic card, so chose Blackberry Bliss instead. I water coloured the focal image using Blackberry Bliss, Moody Mauve and Pebble Path.  The sentiment is a sneak peek from the upcoming January to April 2025 Mini Catalogue called Greetings For All Mix & Match Ephemera Pack. 

  

I hope you are inspired to join in the challenge this week, just use any project in either catalogue to inspire your creativity, then post a picture of your project to the CTC Facebook page.

  

Time to hop on over and see what the lovely Judy has created this week.

Happy Stamping
Monique

CTC #499 - CASE A Background

Welcome to another week at CASEing the Catty Sunday Blog Hop, where utilise the projects within the current Stampin' Up! catalogue to inspire our own projects each week. We also invite you to join with us in the challenge each week by using this inspiration in your own creations and uploading a photo to our Facebook page.

This week we are taking inspiration from the backgrounds of the projects in the current catalogues. So look past the focal image and see what's in the background. 

I was inspired by this card from page 23 of the Mini Catalogue.

It took me a while to even notice the background on the original card, I saw the stamping but it was harder to notice that the trees had been used as masks. On my version of the card I decided to make the technique a little more obvious so added more ink onto the background.  With a darker background I chose the Pretty Peacock sheet from Seasons of Elegance to cut the trees to have a greater contrast. A matt of the same colour helped bring it all together. You can't see it here, but I have added splatters of Wink of Stella to the background which added a lovely sparkle, it also created some pale splotches as well, adding to the snow-swirl appearance. 

  

I hope you are inspired to join in the challenge this week, just take your inspiration from the backgrounds of the projects in the catalogue, then post a picture to the CTC Facebook page.

  

Time to hop on over and see what Julia has created this week.

Happy Stamping
Monique

CTC #496 – CASE A Punch Project

Welcome to another week at CASEing the Catty Sunday Blog Hop, where utilise the projects within the current Stampin' Up! catalogue to inspire our own projects each week. We also invite you to join with us in the challenge each week by using this inspiration in your own creations and uploading a photo to our Facebook page.

This week we are taking inspiration from projects using punches from either catalogue.

I was inspired by this card from page 39 of the Holiday Catalogue, its an easy to miss little tag using a focal image and sentiment with a strip of DSP.

I ended up making five of these little tags, using up the scraps of DSP I had on hand. Aren't they cute?  Apart from fussy cutting the bells from the DSP they were quick and easy to make, much easier if you have a punch!!!

Once I had made the tags I decided they needed a little coordinating box, so I whipped one up from more of the DSP, making a belly band to mirror the tags.   The box is only 3/4" deep so it would be easy to adjust the measurements to fit more tags as a gift, or just in preparation for Christmas. 

  

I hope you are inspired to join in the challenge this week, just use samples from either catalogue that feature punches to inspire your creativity, then post a picture of your project to the CTC Facebook page.

  

Time to hop on over and see what Rebecca has created this week.

Happy Stamping
Monique

CTC #495 - CASE A Die Project

Welcome to another week at CASEing the Catty Sunday Blog Hop, where utilise the projects within the current Stampin' Up! catalogue to inspire our own projects each week. We also invite you to join with us in the challenge each week by using this inspiration in your own creations and uploading a photo to our Facebook page.

This week we are taking inspiration from any project that uses a die, and you can choose from either the Annual or Holiday Catalogue!

I was inspired by this card on page 107 of the Annual Catalogue, I was drawn to the simple organic feel of the card.

For my card I replicated the layout but used some stronger colours to make the die cuts pop a little more. I did want to keep with the organic feel so used papers from Country Woods DSP and Regal Winter DSP.   I really love the sentiment on this card from So Sincere, it was the one from this set that drew me in when I first saw the catalogue. 

Here is a little peek at the inside of the card, stamped with Painted Lavender with some extra colour blended over. 

  

I hope you are inspired to join in the challenge this week, just use any sample featuring a die cut from either catalogue to inspire your creativity, then post a picture of your project to the CTC Facebook page.

  

Time to hop on over and see what Rochelle has created this week.

Happy Stamping
Monique

Let's Craft Together Blog Hop - Colour Challenge

Welcome to the monthly Blog Hop by Let’s Craft Together and thank you for joining us. We are a group of multi-cultural Stampin’ Up!® demonstrators in Australia who have developed a strong friendship though our love of stamping and our admiration of each other’s style of crafting.

The challenge this month was set by me!  I loved this picture showing a traditional colour palette with a little twist.

I chose one of the bonus sketches from the Annual Catalogue, its hidden on page 127 so is easy to miss!  I stamped the focal image onto Watercolour paper with Stazon ink, then used a combination of Moody Mauve and Pretty Peacock to paint the birds, at times blending the colours together to get more depth and variety. I have to say I love the purply grey that comes from doing this.

The branches were water coloured faintly in Pretty Peacock before using my Aqua Painter to add some gold Metallic Enamel Effects Basics to add some shimmer to the project. For the berries I used the Real Red Pearlized Enamel Effects Basics with some Cherry Cobbler reinker added to it to create the depth of colour I was after.  I added some of the gold to the centres of the berries and am really happy with the outcome. It never does show up in photographs as well as it does in person

Thanks for stopping by, time to hop on over to see Sharon's Christmassy creation:

Happy Stamping

Monique

CTC #493 - CASE The Sentimental Christmas Suite

Welcome to another week at CASEing the Catty Sunday Blog Hop, where utilise the projects within the current Stampin' Up! catalogue to inspire our own projects each week. We also invite you to join with us in the challenge each week by using this inspiration in your own creations and uploading a photo to our Facebook page.

This week we are taking inspiration from Sentimental Christmas Suite, on page 28 of the Holiday Catalogue. This is such a cute suite and is the "Making A Difference" collection for this catalogue, which means Stampin' Up! will make a $4.25 donation for every DSP or Suite Collection sold.

I was inspired by this card from the suite, I liked the idea of using a plainer version of the focal image as a pattern on the background.

While I kept the Christmas theme of the original, I did mix it up with different DSP and stamp/die bundle.  I used the Season of Green & Gold DSP and lovely Peaceful Evergreens bundle with a sentiment from Peaceful Season stamp set. 

The sentiment on the front of the card matches the one I have stamped on the inside, also decorated with a tree and matching DSP.  I added a strip of gold from the Textured Metallic Specialty DSP.   This is a card that would be easy to make in bulk, even using different DSP and stamp combinations, I think I'm going to add it to my card sketch collection!

  

I hope you are inspired to join in the challenge this week, just use the projects on page 28 to inspire your creativity, then post a picture of your project to the CTC Facebook page.

  

Time to hop on over and see what Judy has created this week.

Happy Stamping
Monique

CTC #492 - CASE An Annual Catty Bundle

Welcome to another week at CASEing the Catty Sunday Blog Hop, where utilise the projects within the current Stampin' Up! catalogue to inspire our own projects each week. We also invite you to join with us in the challenge each week by using this inspiration in your own creations and uploading a photo to our Facebook page.

This week we are taking inspiration from the samples on pages 57 -73 of the Annual Catalogue featuring bundles. 

I was inspired by this card from page 61 of the Annual Catalogue featuring the Keeping Tabs bundle.

I have to admit that while I loved the idea of this die, I did not purchase the bundle, but I did want to have a go at recreating the original card using DSP.  I thought the Thoughtful Designs Specialty DSP would be a good option as it has such pretty colours and floral pattern  I used the Peach Pie/Petunia Pop sheet, die cutting strips of the DSP that had the most distinct colour difference.  I didn't like how it looked layered onto either of those two colours, so decided to go with Blackberry Bliss for the base and sentiment panel.

  

I hope you are inspired to join in the challenge this week, just use the projects from pages 57 - 73 to inspire your creativity, then post a picture of your project to the CTC Facebook page.

  

Time to hop on over and see what Rebecca has created this week.

Happy Stamping
Monique

CTC #491 – Case a Sketch from Page 16

Welcome to another week at CASEing the Catty Sunday Blog Hop, where utilise the projects within the current Stampin' Up! catalogue to inspire our own projects each week. We also invite you to join with us in the challenge each week by using this inspiration in your own creations and uploading a photo to our Facebook page.

This week we are taking inspiration from the sketches on page 16 of the mini catalogue, a lot of these appear to be of tags, but even these can be added as an element to the front of a card.  I love that Stampin' Up! are adding sketches to the catalogues to provide additional inspiration.

From the sketches on page 16, I chose the sketch in the first column second from the bottom.

Let me just say I love how my card ended up, though it took some twists and turns to get here!  I was originally going to use the Perennial Postage and Lavender DSP, but instead ended up reaching for Nests of Winter DSP and Spotlight on Nature Dies!  Do your projects ever take a journey in the process?  Let me know in the comments. I really like how lovely this looks and how easy it is to create in bulk (a necessity for Christmas Cards), as there is only stamping of the sentiment. 

  

I hope you are inspired to join in the challenge this week, just use the sketches on page 16 of the Holiday Mini Catalogue to inspire your creativity, then post a picture of your project to the CTC Facebook page.

  

Time to hop on over and see what Judy has created this week.

Happy Stamping
Monique