Ocean Front for As You See It Challenge #304

 "Summer time, and the livin' is easy! Fish are jumpin' and the cotton is high!"

Maybe it used to be easy, but with climate change bringing fires, heat domes and catastrophic storms, that is often not the case now. However, there is still a lot to enjoy about summer and I think back to my childhood for my favourite thing so I can fill in the blank for As You See It Challenge #304. Check out the challenge banner:

We live near a large lake, and when I was a kid, my favourite thing about summer was waking up early, and going down to the lake for a swim. Usually, in the early morning, the lake was calm, the water like glass, cool and still. We would dive in and swim, our arms and upper bodies slicing through the surface, as the gulls cried overhead at the interruption of their morning routine! It gave me such a feeling of peace, and of being at one with nature for some reason! It cooled me off, (sometimes the day would even start out hot) and energized me! 

Here's how I used the Ocean Front stamp set along with the retired Do the Impossible stamp set, to recreate that feeling.

• I started with a Basic White Thick cardstock base and on it, I added a layer of Coastal Cabana, die cut with the third largest Deckled Rectangle die and then embossed with the Twisted Rope 3D embossing folder.
• There are several steps to the main image panel on a piece of Basic White cardstock, measuring 3" x 4 1/4".
• I took the single rock stamp from the Ocean Front set and stamped it with Lemon Lolly at the place just above where I wanted the water to meet the sky in the center of the page. I also turned it over and stamped it just below the horizon line underneath the other one, flat sides together.
• I punched out a 1" circle to use as a mask and stuck it over the yellow image in the sky.
• I inked up the sky stamp from Ocean Front with Bubble Bath on the bottom 2/3 of the stamp and Pool Party on the upper 1/3, then stamped that over the upper yellow area with the Bubble Bath ink at the bottom and the Pool Party at the top.
• I stamped the image of the swimmer, from the Do the Impossible stamp set, in Memento ink and stamped the image where you see it located in the photo. I coloured it in using Stampin' Blends Markers in Light Poppy Parade, Skin Tones 1000 and 600.
• I made a mask for the swimmer and covered the image.
• I inked up the water stamp from Ocean Front in Coastal Cabana and stamped it over the yellow area and masked swimmer. (Hmm! Sounds like a TV show of some kind!)
• I inked up the shore stamp in Crumb Cake and fit that in beside the water.
• Using the Basic Black Light Stampin' Blends, I added hand drawn gulls in the sky.
• I backed this panel with a piece of Lemon Lolly cardstock measuring 3 1/3" x 4 1/2" and glued it to the card front at an angle as shown.
• The sentiment is from Do the Impossible and is stamped in Coastal Cabana. It's die cut with the smallest Deckled Rectangle, twice to cut down the size. It's backed with Coastal Cabana, die cut with a regular deckled rectangle of the smallest size. It's adhered to the card front with dimensionals.
• The end is wrapped with Linen Thread and tied in a bow and some Glossy Dots added.

If you live in Canada, and don't have a Stampin' Up! demonstrator, I'd love to be yours. I can help you with ideas, get you catalogues and provide you with Stampin' Up products. You can leave a message in the comments or contact me using any of the methods listed in the right side bar at the top of the page. You can shop with me from anywhere in Canada by clicking on the SHOP NOW button in the top menu or clicking on any of products below from my Online Store.

Product List

Oceanfront Photopolymer Stamp Set [157862] $30.00	*Do The Impossible Cling Stamp Set [151660] $27.00	Basic White 8 1/2" X 11" Thick Cardstock [159229] $12.25	Basic White 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock [159276] $14.50	Coastal Cabana 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [131297] $13.75
Lemon Lolly 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock [161720] $13.75	Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad [132708] $9.00	Bubble Bath Classic Stampin' Pad [161664] $12.25	Coastal Cabana Classic Stampin' Pad [147097] $12.25	Crumb Cake Classic Stampin' Pad [147116] $12.25
Lemon Lolly Classic Stampin' Pad [161666] $12.25	Pool Party Classic Stampin' Pad [147107] $12.25	Poppy Parade Stampin' Blends Combo Pack [154958] $13.75	Natural Tones Stampin’ Blends Collection [160940] $61.25	Basic Black Stampin' Blends Combo Pack [154843] $13.75
Linen Thread [104199] $7.00	Glossy Dots Assortment [158827] $11.00	Twisted Rope 3 D Embossing Folder [161545] $13.75	Deckled Rectangles Dies [159173] $41.00	Stampin' Cut & Emboss Machine [149653] $175.00
Multipurpose Liquid Glue [110755] $7.50	Stampin' Seal [152813] $11.00	Stampin' Dimensionals [104430] $6.00

*Retired Product: no longer sold through Stampin' Up!

Nested Friends for New at SU

Welcome to our July NEW AT SU! Blog Hop! We love to share creative card ideas from Stampin' Up! with you. Today we have projects featuring cards using  products from the Online Exclusive collection, found exclusively on the Stampin' Up! website. The product I chose to highlight is the Nested Friends bundle. This was a product in the 2023 January to April Mini Catalogue, and although it didn't carry over into the 2023/24 Annual Catalogue, it got a new life in the Online Exclusive collection.

For this card, I used a swing card base, thick basic white cardstock, 5 1/2" x 5 7/8", scored at 2 1/8" and 3" on the long side. I lined up my 3" circle die so that the middle of the die corresponded to the 2 1/8" score line and secured it with washi tape. Then I arranged the top cutting plate just to the left of the 2 1/8" score line and ran everything through the Stampin' Cut & Emboss machine. This die cuts half a circle to the left of that first score line. Leaving the die in place the top cutting plate is now moved to the right of the 3" score line and run through the machine again. The result is a small die cut arc to the right of the 3" score line. Fold away from you on the 2 1/8" score line and toward you on the 3" score line to complete the swing card base, ready for decorating.

• I die cut two circles of Basic White to match the diameter of the center circle and embossed both with the Leaf Fall 3D Embossing Folder (also from the Online Exclusive collection). Then I glued one to each side of the swing circle.
• I cut a  2 5/8" x 5 1/4" piece of the Fresh Freesia design of the Masterfully Made Designer Series Paper. I temporarily laid it down on the larger inside panel then turned the card over to trace with a pencil where the circle cuts into it. I trimmed that with paper snips then glued that down.
• I did the same with a 1 7/8" x 5 1/4" piece of the same DSP for the front panel, again tracing on the DSP from the back where the circle cuts into it. The DSP is trimmed and adhered with glue.
• I stamped two of the bird images from the Nested Friends stamp set in Boho Blue and coloured them in with Balmy Blue Stampin' Blends Markers and a combination of Berry Burst and Light Sweet Sorbet. 
• Using the Nested Friends Dies I die cut the birds, a solid nest from Pecan Pie and a nest outline in Early Espresso, plus three eggs in Balmy Blue. I added all of those to the circle.
• The two sentiments were from the same stamp set and stamped in Pecan Pie and die cut with the Deckled Rectangle dies.

• This little gift box is made using Pretty Peacock cardstock for the bottom and the Pretty Peacock design of Masterfully Made DSP for the top. The bottom is 5" square, scored at 1" on all sides, and the top is 4" square, scored at 1/2" on all sides.
• The nest is die cut as above. The bird and branch are stamped in Memento ink and coloured using Pretty Peacock and Petal Pink Stampin Blends markers for the bird and Pecan Pie and Shaded Spruce for the branch.
• Both the card and the gift box are adorned with the Festive Pearls

I hope you enjoyed this project made with the Nested Friends bundle available in the Online Exclusives collection, and the Masterfully Made DSP from the Annual Catalogue! 

Please take a moment to comment at the bottom of this post and let me know how you liked my project or ask me a question about the technique used. Don’t forget to scroll back up and keep hoppin’ with us! – Thank you!

Keep Creating!

Heather Cooper

Please contact your Stampin’ Up! demonstrator if you have any questions or to make a product purchase. If you do not have a demonstrator, I would be happy to answer any questions about products, or the techniques shown here. 

Here's the list of bloggers in our New At SU July Blog Hop to help you keep on track:  

Product List

Nested Friends Cling Stamp Set (English) [160322] $34.00	Masterfully Made 12" X 12" (30.5 X 30.5 Cm) Designer Series Paper [161192] $17.00	Basic White 8 1/2" X 11" Thick Cardstock [159229] $12.25	Basic White 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock [159276] $14.50	Balmy Blue 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [146982] $13.75
Early Espresso 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [119686] $13.75	Pecan Pie 8 1/2" X 11" Cardstock [161717] $13.75	Pretty Peacock 8-1/2" X 11" Cardstock [150880] $13.75	Tuxedo Black Memento Ink Pad [132708] $9.00	Boho Blue Classic Stampin' Pad [161650] $12.25
Pecan Pie Classic Stampin' Pad [161665] $12.25	Balmy Blue Stampin' Blends Combo Pack [148544] $12.00	Berry Burst Stampin’ Blends Combo Pack [161681] $13.75	Sweet Sorbet Stampin' Blends Combo Pack [159224] $13.75	Pumpkin Pie Stampin' Blends Combo Pack [154897] $13.75
Pecan Pie Stampin’ Blends Combo Pack [161674] $13.75	Pretty Peacock Stampin' Blends Combo Pack [154895] $12.00	Shaded Spruce Stampin' Blends Combo Pack [154903] $13.75	Petal Pink Stampin' Blends Combo Pack [154893] $13.75	Festive Pearls [159963] $9.75
Leaf Fall 3 D Embossing Folder [159847] $15.00	Nested Friends Dies [160488] $45.00	Deckled Rectangles Dies [159173] $41.00	Stampin' Cut & Emboss Machine [149653] $175.00	Multipurpose Liquid Glue [110755] $7.50
Mini Glue Dots [103683] $8.00	Mini Stampin' Dimensionals [144108] $6.00