New Catty stuff and PPA Colour Challenge

Hello Blogland!

It's a hot one up here in Southwestern Ontario! I am pretty much staying inside, because it's way too hot out there!!! It's days like this (hitting 32 degrees Celsius-that's 89.6 F for my American friends) that kill me! And that isn't taking humidity in to effect either. I think it's closer to 45 degrees (115F) with the humidex. So, those of you who have the misconception that Canada is always cold, I can tell you quite honestly that it is not. We have pretty much been running our AC since mid-may and last winter never really did get very cold. Anyhow, enough about the weather, us Canadian's can go on forever on that topic, we really arn't happy no matter what the temp is!

Now on to the crafty stuff!! As I have said before, the new Catty is AWESOME!! I fell in love at first glance! Honestly, cant get enough! One of the best perks of being a SU demo is that we get not only sneak peaks of the new stuff, but we get pre-order opportunities too. One of the items we could pre-order from the new catty is the "Artistic Etchings" stamp set. As soon as I saw it I fell in love!!
For those of you who know me well, know that I am obsessed with all things French, namely the wine and cheese! But I love classic French images. And what is more classic than the Eifel Tower? We had a set last year ("Chic Boutique" pg. 76 2010-2011 IDB&C) but it was too doodle-y for my tastes. This one however is perfect!

So I decided to use today's PPA Colour Challenge of Basic Grey, So Safron & Chocolate Chip as my starting point with this set.

I started with a piece of Basic Grey Card stock for my card base and stamped the "Amour" stamp from this set all over it for a background. I then inked the edges with a Stampin' Sponge with Basic Grey Ink. The Top Note die was cut out of Presto Pattern's Paper (which I am soooooo happy is in the new Catty- 117175 pg. 172). I sponged that using So Safron ink, stamped the Eifel tower in Basic Grey (stamped and stamped off), and the edges were inked with Chocolate Chip. The Ribbon I used is the Satin ribbon in Chocolate Chip- which I must note is NOT in the new catty. This item has been replaced with Early Espresso ribbon instead. However, if you still want some good ol' Chocolate Chip satin ribbon, it is in the current mini catty on page 13. So, good news is that along with Bashful Blue and Basic Grey these ribbons are still available until August 31st. But then they are GONE!! So stock up now! Sorry for the diversion.....back to my card. I then stamped the Eifel Tower in Chocolate Chip on a piece of Whisper White paper and cut it out with my paper snips. Now, here is the best part, not sure if you can see it in the picture, but after that I adhered tiny adhesive rhinestones down the top half of the Eifel tower simulating all the beautiful sparkling lights on the tower at night. And yes, we now have adhesive rhinestones and pearls in the new catty (pg 188). You get 150 of each for only $6.50!!! I have bought tons of these beauties! I then adhered the Eifel tower to my card using dimensionals.

Tip: Dimensionals too big for your element? No problem, simply cut the dimensional using your paper snips to the right size. I often use just have a dimensional depending on what I am sticking down.

Products used: All Stampin' Up
Stamp sets: Artistic Etchings
Card stock: Basic Grey, Whisper White
Designer Series Paper: Presto Patterns Paper
Ink: Basic Grey, So Safron, Chocolate Chip.
Accessories: Top Note Die for the Big Shot, Chocolate Chip Satin ribbon, Stampin' Sponges, Rhinestones.

I will leave you with a few pictures we took at the Eifel Tower when we were in France for our Honeymoon almost 5 years ago. Hard to believe it has been almost 5 years since Ed and I were married. Oh boy, does time fly. Hope you enjoyed today's new product preview. Stay tuned, there will be more!!



Cheers,