Grey Granite Twist & Pop 60th Birthday Card

Grey Granite Twist & Pop 60th Birthday Card

Welcome to week twenty eight of our Art With Heart 2023-24 Colour Creations blog hop!

This week we are showcasing Grey Granite, a brownish grey that is part of the neutrals family. Gray Granite is a wonderful colour for masculine cards or nature scenes and today I’ve used it to create a birthday card for my brother-in-law.

Gray Granite goes really well with both silver and gold, so it was the ideal colour to us as a card base for a special ‘twist and pop’ 60th birthday card.

Here’s what the card looks like inside when it is opened up.

Here’s a short video to show how it pops up to reveal the lovely surprise inside.

The four pop-up panels have been stamped in Gray Granite with images and sentiments from the the Year to Celebrate Stamp Set.

Gold and silver foil embellishments have been die cut using the Merries Tree dies.

Now it’s time to hop on over to our next participant, the lovely Kate Morgan – I can’t wait to see what Kate has made this week!

If at any time you find a broken link, you can find the complete list of all participants below.

Kate Morgan

Andrea Sargent

Christine Blain

Catherine Proctor – you are here!

Next Wednesday, 15th November, we’ll be back showcasing Highland Heather or you can join us on Monday night for some Christmas inspiration.

I hope you can join us then.



Starry Sky Teacup Dies Card – Week 3 AWH Colour Creations

Starry Sky Teacup Dies Card – Week 3 AWH Colour Creations

Welcome to week three of our Art With Heart 2022-23 Colour Creations blog hop! We are showcasing each of the 5 new In Colours for the first 5 weeks before we then feature our core colours in alphabetical order for the rest of the year.

Our third new In Colour is Starry Sky, a rich and dramatic midnight blue.

Here’s what Starry Sky looks like in comparison to the other current Stampin’ Up! blues and blue/green aqua colours.

My card today is a belated Mother’s Day card for my mum who loves beautiful old china cups and anything blue and white – blue is her favourite colour. I’ve used both the Teacup Dies and the Flowers of Home Dies to create a Wedgewood like effect on my teacups.

Smaller dies can often be overlooked, but these dies from the Flowers of Home Dies are the perfect scale for these teacups. The “fern” die on the other teacups is one of the dies in the Teacup Die set.

My top tip for adding these detailed dies to the top of your teacups? Make sure you adhere an adhesive sheet to the reverse side of the cardstock you are die cutting BEFORE you die cut it with these floral dies. It makes it so much easier to adhere them without getting glue everywhere.

The Teacup Dies don’t have a saucer die, however that is easily fixed. The plain oval from the Double Oval Punch or the smallest plain oval die from the now retired Oval Layering Dies (these two ovals are virtually identical in size and shape) work perfectly as a saucer for the teacups.

I used my light Gray Granite and light Starry Sky Stampin’ Blends to draw a line under the base of each cup to “anchor” the cups into their saucers.

The “Happy Mother’s Day” sentiment from Flowering Tulips stamp set was the perfect shaped sentiment for this layout, however you could replace this sentiment with the “Happy Birthday” “Thank You”, “Thinking of You” or the “Hello” sentiment from the new Go To Greetings stamp set.

An oversized card requires an oversized envelope, so I made a simple one using one of the DSP patterns from the new stunning Sun Prints DSP.

Both sides of this DSP perfectly match the colours I’ve used in my card today: Starry Sky, Gray Granite and Basic White.

Gray Granite Baker’s Twine and two square white brads make an easy and stylish closure.

As well as mix and matching your dies, don’t forget to mix and match your stamp sets too. To make the perfect sentiment for my mum I combined the “Thank you” sentiment from the Cup of Tea Stamp set and the “love you so much” sentiment from the Flowering Tulips stamp set.

I added a capital “I” to make the sentiment read “I love you so much” by stamping the “/” stamp from the new Alphabest stamp set on an angle and it worked perfectly!

Now it’s time to hop on over to our next participant, the lovely Andrea Sargent – I can’t wait to see what Andrea has made this week!

If at any time you find a broken link, you can find the complete list of all participants below.

Andrea Sargent

Diane Furniss  

Theresa Gerrard

Kate Morgan  

Rachel Palmieri

Amie McIlroy  

Tina Gillespie

Rachel Woollard  

Sharon Davern  

Christine Blain  

Ros Davidson  

Michele Taylor   

Rosa Leyden 

Catherine Proctor – you are here!  

If you live in Australia, you can find and purchase these products in my Stampin’ Up! Online Store.

Product List

Next Wednesday we will showcase another new In Colour – Sweet Sorbet, a very vibrant red,

Wherever you are in the world, stay safe, stay calm … and keep on crafting xxx

Cath xx



Stampin’ Up! Gray Granite – Week 21 AWH Colour Creations Blog Hop

Stampin’ Up! Gray Granite – Week 21 AWH Colour Creations Blog Hop

Welcome to week 21 of our 2021-22 Colour Creations blog hop! Tonight we are showcasing Gray Granite, a really versatile gray from the Neutrals colour collection.

This week I didn’t have a lot of time to craft so I opened up one of my Stampin’ Up! kits: the For the Guys All-Inclusive Card Kit. For $33 this kit is incredible value as you get all the materials you need to make 10 cards with 10 matching envelopes.

After you’ve made your 10 cards you still have leftover adhesives as well as an acrylic block, a Mossy Meadow Stampin’ Spot and a fantastic stamp set full of stamps to suit virtually any man in your life!

You could simply make these cards up as instructed or make your own variations. These are how the cards look when they are made up per the enclosed instructions.

Here’s my first variation. I trimmed and mounted one of the card bases to a layer of Gray Granite cardstock onto a Basic White card base. The mountain scene was layered up as per the card design but It was adhered to the a layer of Basic White and cut into 5 strips before mounting onto the card base using dimensionals.

This card uses the lovely woodgrain pattern from one of the envelopes in this kit as the base layer on the Basic White card base – I’ll simply use another envelope instead for this card. The largest layering circle die cut this scene.

I did make up this card as per the kit instructions, but as I would not use this as a Father’s Day card (as suggested in the instructions) I substituted the Father’s Day sentiment for the birthday one instead.

I’m really happy with these masculine cards – the Gray Granite works so well these other soft neutral colours.

Now it’s time to hop on over to our next participant, the lovely Kate Morgan – I can’t wait to see what she’s made this week!

If you find a broken link or have come to this blog hop from a different entry point, you can view the the full list of participants below:

Catherine Proctor – you are here!
Kate Morgan
Diane Furniss
Andrea Sargent
Rachel Palmieri
Claire Daly
Theresa Gerrard
Rachel Woollard
Christine Blain
Michele Taylor
Tina Gillespie
Caroline Manwaring

If you live in Australia, you can find and purchase all these products in my Stampin’ Up! Online Store.  

I’ll be back with another Christmas card next Monday. In the meantime, wherever you are in the world, stay safe, stay calm … and keep on crafting xxx



Stampin’ Up! Coastal Cabana – Week 12 AWH Colour Creations Blog Hop

Stampin’ Up! Coastal Cabana – Week 12 AWH Colour Creations Blog Hop

Welcome to week 12 of our 2021-22 Colour Creations blog hop! Tonight we are showcasing Coastal Cabana, a colour from the Brights family.

Did I hear you say “step away from the Be Dazzling DSP, Catherine”? Well, sorry, not sorry, I just can’t seem to stop using this SALE-a-bration specialty DSP!

Tonight’s Coastal Cabana card pairs something old (the All Things Fabulous stamp set and the Fabulous Floral dies) with something new (the FREE Be Dazzling DSP). The colour combination I’ve used is one I’m always drawn to for summer dresses, scarves and earrings: Coastal Cabana, Bermuda Bay, Gray Granite, Basic White and of course, the gorgeous champagne gold sparkle of the Be Dazzling DSP.

The largest flowers on my card are stamped using 3-step stamps that gradually layer up the colour of the flower – each level of stamp is numbered inside the stamp case. There are so many different colour combinations you can create with this type of stamp. Here’s how I inked up my flowers for this card.

  • Stamp the largest flower stamps (1A, 2A and 3A) in Coastal Cabana, stamped off once
  • Stamp the middle stamps (1B, 2B and 3B) in full strength Coastal Cabana
  • Stamp the smallest, top stamp (1C, 2C and 3C) in full strength Bermuda Bay

The leaves were stamped in Gray Granite, both at full strength and stamped off. I also die cut a few leaves from the Be Dazzling DSP and added 5mm strips of the Be Dazzling DSP at the top and bottom of my card, sitting beside the largest, intricate lacy die (from the Fabulous Floral dies) that has been cut in half and placed either side of the main front panel.

I used some left over stamped and die cut sprigs and leaves to decorate the inside of my card.

Now it’s time to hop on over to our next participant, the very talented Caroline Manwaring. I can’t wait to see what she’s made this week!

If you find a broken link or have come to this blog hop from a different entry point, you can view the the full list of participants below:

Sharon Davern 

Theresa Gerrard 

Christine Blain  

Catherine Proctor – you are here!

Caroline Manwaring

Andrea Sargent

Kate Morgan

Ros Davidson

Rachel Palmieri 

Tina Gillespie 

Michele Taylor 

Rachel Woollard 



Art With Heart Colour Creations Showcase: Week 26 Merry Merlot

Art With Heart Colour Creations Showcase: Week 26 Merry Merlot

Welcome to week twenty-six of our 2020-2021 Art With Heart Colour Creations Showcase.

Each week various members of our Art With Heart Colour Creations team will be bringing you weekly colour inspiration as we showcase our range of over 50 beautiful Stampin’ Up! colours in alphabetical order.

Week 26 – Merry Merlot

Hello crafters. This week I’m sharing a Christmas card I’ve made using an entirely neutral colour palette – I really love any combination of neutrals together on a card.

Merry Merlot is our colour for this week and I’ve only used a tiny bit of it on my card because it is a very rich colour. Hopefully I’ve used enough to show you how nicely it pairs with these other neutrals.

If there ever were two bundles just crying out to be used together it’s the Beautiful World bundle on p26 of the annual catalogue and the Peace & Joy bundle on page 18 of the August to December Mini catalogue. I love how Stampin’ Up! co-ordinate their products right through their range.

The “faux embossed” background of my Gray Granite slimline card was easy to make using the globe dies and adhesive sheets. Just remember to attach a sheet to the back of your card stock before you die cut. Next time I make this card I think I’ll add more globes and space them more closely together for even greater impact.

The joy sentiment uses all three joy die cuts from the Peace & Joy bundle. Adding adhesive sheet to the card stock for the thinest joy on the top layer makes it easy to adhere.

Apart from the middle layer of the joy sentiment the other touch of Merry Merlot on the card is the Rhinestone Basic Jewels which I have coloured using my Merry Merlot Stampin’ Write Marker.

The pine fronds were stamped in Mossy Meadow and fussy cut out using my paper snips.

I can’t wait to see what the rest of the Art With Heart team have created with Merry Merlot today. Click on the links below to see what they’ve made.

Next Tuesday we’ll be showcasing one of the Subtles: Mint Macaron. We hope you can join us all then.

To purchase any of the products featured in today’s post, simply click on the product links below.

Product List

If you’d like me to post you your very own copy of the August–December 2020 Mini Catalogue, 2020-21 Stampin Up! Annual Catalogue, the 2020-21 Beginners Brochure, or to simply find out about more about Stampin’ Up! contact me.

In the meantime, wherever you are in the world, stay safe, stay calm…and keep on crafting xxx

Art With Heart Colour Creations Showcase: Week 20 Gray Granite

Art With Heart Colour Creations Showcase: Week 20 Gray Granite

Welcome to week twenty of our 2020-2021 Art With Heart Colour Creations Showcase.

Each week various members of our Art With Heart Colour Creations team will be bringing you weekly colour inspiration as we showcase our range of over 50 beautiful Stampin’ Up! colours in alphabetical order.

Week 20 – Gray Granite

Gray Granite is very similar to Crumb Cake in that it’s an incredibly versatile neutral colour: not too light, not too dark and it looks really fabulous with any colour you’d like to pair it with. And although I usually pair gray with silver, Gray Granite is a brownish gray so I also love pairing it with gold.

My colour combination today uses only three colours: Gray Granite, Gold Foil and Whisper White.

One of the great things about having a mother and a best friend who both share your crafting passion is that we can craft together and borrow each other’s supplies! My mum lent me the the beautiful Dove of Hope bundle this week…and it was the perfect set to showcase Gray Granite.

This is a such a great bundle for quick and easy cards I ended up making three cards. Card one was inspired by this sheet of designer series paper from the Peony Garden DSP – this pack of DSP is on sale for the month of October.

A simple white dove created from three die cuts and a pre-cut gold wreath made this card child’s play. All I had to add was a the “Peace Joy Love” sentiment stamped in Gray Granite and a bow of Wonder of the Season Gold cord topped with a gold dot die.

I created the gold dot using the row of dots die in the Detailed Dove dies to die cut some scrap gold foil from the Forever Gold laser-cut paper.

My square card uses a Gray Granite card base to bring out the pretty detail in the Plush Poinsettia specialty paper – I love the texture of this flocked vellum.

After fussy cutting the word peace from the the “Peace Joy Love” sentiment I used more of the die cut gold dots to embellish the card. The sprig in the dove’s mouth has also been die cut from extra gold foil in the Forever Gold laser-cut paper.

I used the same die cuts as my first dove, but achieved a totally different look just by changing the way the wings sat on the dove’s body.

The final card was inspired by one the incredibly talented members of the Artisan Design team: Martin Stone. Although I’ve copied the basic layout of his card I’ve made this card my own by using different colours, different trim and embellishments and a different embossing folder for the background layer.

The dove is die cut but the “Peace” sentiment is fussy cut. This time instead of using the Wonder of the Season Gold cord for my bow I used the Forever Greenery Gold Trim.

All three cards have three different background layers — flocked vellum, embossed card stock and designer series paper — but their geometric patterns are very similar.

I wonder which background layer and card design you prefer?

I can’t wait to see what the rest of the Art With Heart team have created with Gray Granite today. Click on the links below to see what they’ve made.

Kate Morgan

Michele Taylor

Sujatha Harding

Vicki Boucher

Rachel Woollard

Andrea Sargent

Diane Furniss

Tina Gillespie

Rachel Palmieri

Caroline Manwaring

Christine Blain

Ros Davidson

Theresa Gerrard

Sharon Davern

Judy May

Next Tuesday we’ll be showcasing one of the Subtles: Highland Heather. We hope you can join us all then.

To purchase any of the products featured in today’s post, simply click on the product links below.

Product List

If you’d like me to post you your very own copy of the August–December 2020 Mini Catalogue, 2020-21 Stampin Up! Annual Catalogue, the 2020-21 Beginners Brochure, or to simply find out about more about Stampin’ Up! contact me.

In the meantime, wherever you are in the world, stay safe, stay calm…and keep on crafting xxx

Art With Heart Colour Creations Blog Hop: Week 23 Gray Granite

Art With Heart Colour Creations Blog Hop: Week 23 Gray Granite

Welcome to week 23 of the Art With Heart Colour Creations Blog Hop!

This week we are showcasing a new neutral: Gray Granite.

I must admit, as much as I love crumb cake, gray granite comes a close second. This is a colour that literally goes with everything and it sits somewhere between smoky slate, Sahara sand and crumb cake.

Even though it makes every other colour pop, for my card today I decided to go for a very fresh and clean look, pairing it with just whisper white and champagne foil.

I used a Memories and More whisper white pre-made card as my base, added a layer of champagne foil and then another layer of whisper white embossed with the softly falling textured impression embossing folder.

The beautiful deer are stamped in gray granite onto whisper white using the Dashing Deer stamp set, then cut out with their matching Detailed Deer thinlits.

Don’t you love the pattern on the biggest deer?

The sentiment is from the same Dashing Deer stamp set, stamped in gray granite and the embellishments are die cut out of champagne foil using the detailed deer thinlits. A tiny double bow of linen thread is the final touch.

To see what the rest of the team have made click on the links below. 

Tina Gillespie

Kate Morgan

Michelle Taylor

Caroline Manwaring

Rachel Woollard

Diane Furniss

Sue Madex

Catherine Proctor ⇐you are here

Thanks for hopping along with us today. To purchase any of the products I used in this project you can click on the links below.

Or if you’d like me to post you your very own copy of the 2018-2019 annual catalogue or find out about more about Stampin’ Up! contact me.

Next Tuesday we’ll be showcasing a new subtle colour: Highland Heather.

We hope you can hop along with us all then!

Art With Heart Colour Creations Blog Hop: Week 21 Granny Apple Green

Art With Heart Colour Creations Blog Hop: Week 21 Granny Apple Green

Welcome to week 21 of the Art With Heart Colour Creations Blog Hop!

This week we are showcasing one of the Brights: Granny Apple Green.

I really love this vibrant, fresh colour as well as the stamp set I used on my card today: Seasoned With Kindness. Seasoned With Kindness is a hostess stamp, found right at the back of the catalogue. 

The is such a fun set to use because you can colour in the images or use the two-step stamping with the stamps provided like I did on my card, lining images up with my Stamparatus.

Can you guess what colour I used with the Granny Apple Green to stamp the plants? It’s Shaded Spruce…isn’t this a great colour combination? 

The little pots my plants sit in are stamped in Gray Granite and Basic Black Ink onto Gray Granite cardstock, fussy cut with my snips, mounted onto the cardstock with mini dimensionals and then topped with a bow of Linen Thread. How cute is that darling little tag ♥!

I mounted my stamped image onto some Shaded Spruce cardstock and then onto a piece of Granny Smith Green I embossed with the Climbing Vine embossing folder.

To see what the rest of the team have made click on the links below. 

Ros Davidson

Kate Morgan

Claire Daly

Diane Furniss

Caroline Manwaring

Rachel Woollard

Tina Gillespie

Sharon Davern

Sue Madex

Catherine Proctor ⇐you are here

Thanks for hopping along with us today. To purchase any of the products I used in this project you can click on the links below.

Product List

Or if you’d like me to post you your very own copy of the 2018-2019 annual catalogue or find out about more about Stampin’ Up! contact me.

Next Tuesday we’ll be showcasing a 2018-19 In Colour: Grapefruit Grove.

We hope you can hop along with us all then!

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