It’s so great to be back again with the CASE-ing the Catty crew for this week’s challenge. This week we are turning to pages 142 – 153 of the annual Stampin’ Up! catalogue for inspiration.  

 

 

My card was loosely inspired by the Tranquil Tide card on page 142 of the 2018 annual Stampin’ Up! catalogue. You can see it above on the top left.

I moved things around a bit but the general layout was inspired by this card. 

Just to mix things up a bit, I added an unusual insert to make this card a fancy fold.

Well, it’s kind of a fancy fold. You’ll see what I mean…

 

Firstly, here’s the front: 

And here’s a top view that shows the accordion fold insert:

And opened up, standing: 

 

 

 

How to make an Accordion Insert Card

 

 

I had so much fun making this card, and ended up using this design for my 2018 Stampin’ Up! Incentive Trip card swap on the recent Alaska Cruise.

Want to have a go at making your own?

Here’s how:

1. Cut your A4 sheet of cardstock at 10cm wide. Leave the cardstock at the full length, which is 29.7cm. 

(I’m from Australia so I’ve started with our A4 standard size cardstock, but the same concept could easily be adapted for US Letter size cardstock). 
2. Score at 14cm, 18cm, 22cm and 26cm. Fold to create an accordion or concertina fold as shown above (ie valley, mountain, valley, mountain)

Optional: stamp to decorate. If you are stamping, it’s best to do that before you’ve stuck anything down. I actually prefer to do the stamping before I’ve even done the scoring, because when you stamp on the score lines the image doesn’t look as good. 

3. Adhere the larger panel to a 14.5cm x 10.5cm panel of cardstock.

Make sure it’s centred so there’s an even 5mm border showing all the way around. 

4. Fold up the panels and adhere another 14.5cm x 10.5cm panel to the top folded panel.

Decorate as desired. I find it easier to embellish the top layer of cardstock before you attach it to the accordion fold insert. 

 

Nature’s Poem Card front

 

The front of my card features the Nature’s Poem designer series paper, Velvet Ribbon, Leaves Trinkets, and copper trim. I just love the way the copper trim holds its shape when you stretch it out and pull it. Amazing stuff! It’s a ‘must have’ for your copper embellishment collection. 

 

(Click image to enlarge)

 

 

I hope you like this card and that it inspires you to make one too.  

Next on the blog hop is Judy. You can find her post here. 

 

 

Thanks for joining us this week.

For more ideas and inspiration, join me over on Facebook. And to see some of the other Alaska Incentive Trip swaps I made, just scroll back to July 2018 and you’ll see loads of photos from the trip. 

Happy stamping, 

 

Our amazing adventure with the 2018 Stampin’ Up! Incentive Trip is now over (so sad!). The Alaska cruise was an incredible trip. Honestly, one of our all-time favourites. I find myself pausing in mid-sentence having flashbacks of the morning we cruised up to a glacier, with floating icebergs going past the ship. Amazing! And to share this adventure with my hubby and our Stampin’ Up! friends from around the world was just the icing on the cake. 

 

Thanks to all those who came with me on the trip via Facebook. It was the first time I’ve posted regularly while away on an Incentive Trip and it was so much fun to read your comments and answer your questions while it was all happening.  

 

Now it’s time to get crafting again! I’ve missed my craft room and can’t wait to get back to it. 

I also have some news to coincide with the start of a new month and new specials from Stampin’ Up!. 

 

Colour Your Season 

 

This month a brand new, limited edition stamp set and framelit bundle is available! You can buy the Blended Season stamps on their own, or the Stitched Seasons framelits. But if you buy them together you save 10%. All the prices are shown below. 

 

There are 12 stamps in this set, but some of them are very big so they had to be split over two stamp cases as you can see above.

Those three large framelits are my favourite of all… they have stitching on the inside and outside of the cut lines, so you can use both the negative and positive part of the die cuts. So clever! They are fabulous for making windows in the front of cards.  

Check them out in the online store

 

 

 

 

Watercolour Pencils – New Colours! 

 

Do you love colouring with watercolour pencils?

Well you’re in for a treat, because this month we have a new assortment of gorgeous colours. 

 

 

The 10 acid free and lignin free pencils come in the following colours: 

• Balmy Blue
• Cajun Craze
• Cherry Cobbler
• Coastal Cabana
• Crushed Curry
• Flirty Flamingo
• Garden Green
• Gorgeous Grape
• Granny Apple Green
• Night of Navy

Have you tried my favourite watercolour pencil blending technique?

Lay down some colour by scribbling the pencils, then blend with the Wink of Stella brush. Not only does it blend the pencil lines beautifully, but you also get some subtle shimmer from the Wink of Stella. Love it! 

 

 

Prices and More Information

 

Click the image below to enlarge. All the information you need is here, including prices, quantities and item codes. 

 

 

 

BONUS DAYS

 

If you’ve shopped with me for a while, you might remember the Bonus Days we did back in July 2016 and July 2017. Yippee, we’re doing it again!

 

How it works: 

 

1. When you shop this month you’ll earn a $9 voucher for every $90 you spend (before shipping). Spend $180 and you’ll get TWO $9 vouchers. In fact, you can earn as many as you like and you can even give them away as gifts if you want! Pretty cool, huh?
2. You’ll be emailed the voucher codes after placing the order, so just hang on to them in a safe place.
3. In September, redeem your vouchers when shopping in the online store. It’s that easy! 

 

 

 

 

Also, just letting you know we have a Host Special next month, so get in quick if you’d like to book a cardmaking class. I do workshops pretty much all over Victoria!

Dates are limited, so contact me soon if you’d like to host your own party in September. 

 

? Use Host Code RSHT7A2B if the order is under $250. For orders over $250, you’ll automatically earn $25 in free products so no need to use a host code! 

 

Happy stamping, 

 

 

We are in Seattle at the moment, getting ready for the 2018 Stampin’ Up Incentive Trip. So grateful to be attending our 9th trip – this time a week-long Alaskan Cruise! What a dream come true.

Just letting you know that I’ll be posting on my Stamping with Simone Facebook page while I’m away, so feel free to like and follow that page if you want to see photos of the trip as they happen.

I’ve also got a special Host Code for you to use while I’m away: 9M23XNQM. My is open as normal, so if you want to grab some Stampin’ Up! goodies just jump over to my and enter host code 9M23XNQM and you could get $25 in Stampin’ Up! shopping vouchers. If your order is over $250 then you won’t need to use the code because you will automatically get $25 in host benefits to spend all by yourself! It’s a great deal.

Also just a quick reminder that we have two great specials on at the moment:

• Join now and get 10 free ink pads as a bonus in your Starter Kit

The choice is yours when you join Stampin’ Up! – you can join to make money or join to save money. Or maybe a bit of both! Either way, a special bonus like this one is the perfect time to test the waters and see if being part of Stampin’ Up! is for you. If you decide not to continue, then you’ll stop getting the discount but the kit is still yours to keep. I’ve loved my 10+ years with this wonderful company and still count my blessings that I took the plunge all those years ago.

Happy stamping!

Simone xxx