April 14, 2023

Moving on to Better Days

Amy Jasper Cards, simple and cute embossing, quick and cute, Stampin' Up 0 Comments

Well, friends, it’s been a while since I shared anything with you here on my blog. I’m working on getting back into a regular flow and routine again after being out of sorts for a while. The past couple years have been tough. Instead of getting into all the boring details, let me just sum it all up to “health issues”. I am finally feeling more like myself again in the last month or so. I’m moving on to better days!

I haven’t been completely absent. You can check out the many Facebook Live videos I’ve shared on my Inking on the Fly Facebook page and the sporadic posts on Instagram. You may have even attended some of my Stampin’ Up! events since the start of this year. My monthly technique classes are up and running and I co-hosted a fantastic retreat weekend in March.

I’m excited to be at the beginning of a re-boot. There’s so much I want to create, so many people I want to connect with, and a lot of planning to do! It’s going to be AWESOME!

I’m back, Baby!

Simple Encouragement

Today, I’m sharing this simple and beautiful card design with you. The sentiment is encouraging and positive. I love that!

The card base is a clean Thick Basic White cardstock, on which I layered 3/8″ strips and a couple die-cut pieces of the Enjoy the Journey Designer Series Paper from Stampin’ Up!. I used the stitched circle from the Stylish Shapes dies and the hexagon from the Beautiful Shapes dies. The sentiment from the Greatest Journey stamp set is stamped with Versamark Ink, then heat embossed with Black Embossing Power before adhering it to the card front with Stampin’ Dimensionals.

Orange twine from the Three Twine Combo Pack is tied in a large bow and adhered with a Glue Dot just under the hexagon shape. Finally, the Enamel Sticker Icon element was coloured with a Pumpkin Pie Blends Marker before adhering it to the card.

Some of these products are being retired this month! They might already be sold out or they might still be available. The best way to know is to go to the online store for the most up-to-date availability.

Life is good today and it will be better in the days to come.

September 17, 2021

On the Brighter Side: A quick & fun get-well card

Amy Jasper As You See It Challenge, simple and cute 2021, animals, Bunches of Fun, get well, quick and cute, Sale-a-bration 2021, Speed challenge 0 Comments

I have a few personal rules that I follow when I have to make a card in a hurry:

No colouring
Do not emboss
Avoid die-cutting
Bows are out
Fussy-cutting? No way!

If I choose to break ONE of those personal rules, I can usually create a great card in less than 10 minutes, no problem.

Today’s card was created for the As You See It Speed Challenge and my rules got thrown out the window!

10 minutes or less!

I was frantically searching for my Glue Dots to attach my bow when I looked at my stopwatch. At 9 minutes and 48 seconds, I had to call it quits in order to meet the requirements of this challenge! Ack!!

My bow-less card is still pretty cute, though. I used the Bunches of Fun stamp set to achieve the playful comedic approach required for this challenge. This dog looks so embarrassed, don’t you think! He has exactly the same expression that my dog had when he had to wear the cone. LOL!

Step it up!

Even though this card turned out pretty cute, it just didn’t feel done. I decided to do another one, without the time limit, so that I could step-it up.

I didn’t change much, but you can see how switching the card base from Basic White to Crumb Cake makes a big difference. Also, I DID add that bow along with a few of the clear Elegant Faceted Gems. That’s all it needed for me to be satisfied that it was complete.

I gave this self-conscious canine his brown fur with a combination of my Stampin’ Blends Markers. Dark and Light Soft Suede Stampin’ Blends Markers were used, then coloured over with the Light Crumb Cake. His black spots are accented with Dark Smoky Slate and Light Basic Black. For the cone, I used the Light Soft Seafoam. Finally, to give this pitiful pooch a bit more dimension on the Basic White background, I carefully outlined the image with the Light Smoky Slate Stampin’ Blends Marker.

After colouring, Rover was given his circular frame with the Cut & Emboss Machine and one of the Layering Circles Dies. I attached him to patterned paper layers with Stampin’ Dimensionals.

There are a couple different pieces of patterned paper used on this design. First, the pink stripes paper is from the Pattern Party host exclusive paper pack. Second, the black polka-dot paper is from the Beautifully Penned paper pack, only available as a FREE item this month during Sale-a-bration.

Of course, you can see that I used White Embossing on the Basic Black cardstock for the sentiment.

Side by side comparison

**Card on the left**: 9 minutes 48 seconds **Card on the right**: Same design, but took my time and made some changes.

Are you up for the challenge?

As a designer for the As You See It Challenge blog, I have the privilege of creating samples to give some inspiration to our players. If you feel inspired to try this speed challenge, be sure to share your finished card with us over at the blog. Remember to use a stopwatch so you can tell us your time!

In Canada? You can order from me anytime at my online store and register for any of my virtual classes.

August 1, 2021

I Love Happy Mail!

Amy Jasper simple and cute 2021, heat embossing, quick and cute, sweet and simple 0 Comments

I haven’t been crafting all week as I’ve been away on a little family trip. This is the perfect opportunity to share a project made by someone else!

This gorgeous card was given to me by my friend and fellow Stampin’ Up! Demonstrator, Terry Hamilton. She’s much better at sending cards than I am and I was lucky enough to receive this beauty!

I love happy mail!

Evening Evergreen and Soft Succulent cardstock are a great colour combination. Terry used some gold embossing with the flourish image from the Elegantly Said stamp set. It looks like delicate gold embroidery, adding to the clean elegance of this design.

The sentiment from the Peaceful Moments stamp set works perfectly with the gap in the diagonal cut paper.

I’m so grateful for Terry and the friendship we have because of our connection through the passion for papercrafting.

You will definitely want to check out Terry’s blog to see more of her designs.