Petal Pops and a snippet

We have the first challenges of 2025 at We Love Stamping and Stamping Sensations where we have the themes of 'Anything but Square' as selected by Emma and 'Hand Coloured Image' at Stamping Sensations. Prizes come from AALL and Create and Grafton Crafts which is the only craft shop in my neck of the woods about fifteen miles away, it's a well stocked bricks and mortar and on line shop offering fee p&p on all orders over £15.

It wasn't my intention but DT shares appear to follow a very similar colour palette. For the above triptych card I've used A&C's Rosy Daze (1251), Petal Pop (1259) and Wiggle and Dance (1174) plus a few older worker stamps. Oxides for the background and Ecoline pens to colour.

Again A&C stamps and base die which is Heart marks the Spot (46) and stamp Best you every Had (1176), but currently on offer. Coloured best I can using Ecoline pens, never an easy ask of me!

Last but by no means least a new challenge has started over at the Snippets Playground, there are rumours of a party to celebrate 13 years since Miss Di took on us lot, so here is my share using a one of the new A&C stamp sets, this one is Sunny Splash (1250) and base dies Frayed Frames (25) currently on offer. Sunflowers stamped several times onto snippets, coloured and cut out, sentiment from Power of the Word and Birdie, both stamped onto snippets.

I do hope you will come and join us this month, I know there are some awesome colourists our there so would love to see you creativity.

Matching pairs

Good morning, today sees our first Allsorts challenge of the year where I am your host and along with the usual A/G theme I've chose the option of "Matching Pairs", a card with envelope or perhaps tag, gift box or bag, the choice of  'pair' is down to you. We have two wonderful prizes of stamps from Lavinia.

My card and envelope was for one of our DIL's Birthday last month. She loves walking on the Sussex Downs where they live with her Vizslas and always keen to tell me what wildlife she's seen so I thought this would appeal.

So of course I have used Lavinia stamps, quite a few in fact, Tree of Courage, Tree of Hope, Wild Leaf Corner, Gideon and Wild Hares, elements inks and on the envie Fox 1. I used Skeleton Trees on the far hills.

I used the leaf corner to create the frame into which I stamped the scene and used Pan Pastels for the sky, elements for the rolling hills of The Downs, coloured the leaves of the frame and stamped an envie to match.

A second one again using lots of Lavinia stamps plus a few of the new Mushroom 1 stickers in the foreground. The birdie is singing his song as Basil serenades Bibi, books are Wands and Spells masked and some stamped a second time to elevate the pile and the background built up with Fir Tree, Creeping Vine, Street Lamp and Mini Hearts.

This week saw the preview of the December exchanges at the Card Chain Challenge, above the card I sent to my WLS blogging pal Hilary. I received a card from Michaela in Austria, but afraid I can't share as it was 'lifted' by three year old Margo who was very taken with the cute Santa and Reindeer - what more can I say! The challenge was a bingo grid, I opted for 'Squirrel, Sassy (not sure I nailed that one), Snow, Sparkle and Shrubbery (a very distant one across the hills). All stamps are Lavinia.

I do hope I've inspired you to come and join in at Allsorts this time round......again a two week challenge following our new format.