Every cloud has a silver lining... with sprinkles of a cheery life!

On the whole I have quite a "glass half-full" kind of mindset, so the cheery sentiments in the Stampin' Up! charity stamp set "Sprinkles of Life" really appealed to me as soon as I saw them! I especially loved the words "Every cloud has a silver lining - you just have to look up to see it." I am a great believer of how changing how you decide to view things in life can change your whole outlook and well-being. I'd rather have a half-full glass life than a half-empty one any day... wouldn't you? I think that the old adage of "smile and the whole world smiles with you" rings quite true as well!

So how about a cheery card to help you on your way?

I love how versatile this stamp set is - I just know that I will be using this set time and time again. Just look at all the different sentiments and images that come in this 22 piece stamp set:

Sprinkles of Life, photopolymer stamp set: 139971 £19.00

I like to "work smarter, not harder" where I can and if I can re-use a card design, or even just the layout, for more than one occasion then I do try to - afterall, why spend time, effort and energy re-inventing the wheel every time you need something new, eh? Bearing this time- and energy-saving idea in mind, I decided to use the following card design for both a team training/monthly-meet-up event's "Make and Take" as well as for one of my card-class projects last week. It meant that I only had to design one project, not two, and I could prep the card-kit packs for both events at the same time! Hopefully that makes me efficient, not lazy, ooer! hehe

I wanted to make a card that was a little bit different, but still stayed true to the set... Here it is:

Every Cloud Hot Air Balloon Card

The clouds and sentiment were stamped onto whisper white cardstock with Versamark ink (after first wiping the card with my trusty Embossing Buddy to remove static and fingerprints) and then Stampin' Up! Silver Embossing Powder was liberally poured over it; the excess powder tipped off and then my heat tool was used to heat-set it. I love the alchemy of heat embossing - it never fails to wow me when I see the dull grey powder melt and transform into lovely shiny raised silver! Little things please little minds, I  know, I know...but I love it! The silver-edged clouds were then punched out using the fantastic new Tree Builder Punch and glued onto the Soft Sky layer of card with Tombow Multipurpose Glue.

The cheery 3-D Hot air balloon was made using the 1 3/4" Circle Punch to cut four circles (one each of Mint Macaron, Cucumber Crush, Watermelon Wonder and Delightful Dijon). I folded each circle in half, scored the folds with my bone-folder and then stuck them together so that they fanned out into a half sphere shape as seen above. This was then glued down onto the soft sky background, over the silver-lined clouds. The balloon can easily be folded flat when you want to put  the card into the envelope for posting. I stamped the basket in Tip Top Taupe ink onto Tip Top Taupe cardstock and fussy cut it out with my much-loved paper snips and then hand-drew the balloon ropes directly onto the card with the Tip Top Taupe Write Marker.

The card was finished off with a little bird stamped in Memento Tuxedo Black Ink and coloured in with the brush tip end of the Tip Top Taupe Write Marker, then I punched it out using the Tree Builder Punch. The little flower on the basket was stamped with Watermelon Wonder ink onto Watermelon Wonder cardstock and this was also punched out with the Tree Builder Punch; with a rhinestone jewel added for a bit of extra bling! The A6-sized card base is cut from Mint Macaron A4 cardstock. I really love the cute little bird and the dinky little flower - but being so tiny, it can be very easy to lose them on your desk if you are not careful!

I am happy to report that both my fellow-Pinkies team mates and my class ladies, all really enjoyed making this card and I hope you will too...

One of the best bits about teaching card-making classes is seeing how each person takes my designs and makes them their own, just by changing up a little thing here and there. I love all the slight variations in the cards in the next photographs - whether it is changing the taupe bird to a bluebird; adding a candy dot instead of a rhinestone to the flower; or, decorating the balloon rather than the basket with the flower; adding a pair of birds instead of just one; or, adding a bit of colour to the clouds; changing the shape of the sentiment banner; or even deciding to put the greeting inside the card instead of on the front of the card! I think they are all lovely cards, don't you agree?

I hope that I have inspired you with this cheery, 3-D hot air balloon card today? I would love to know what you think about it and which variation is your favourite!

Remember that you can buy all the items to make this card yourself from my online shop here and if you use the hostess code 7PDWG4W3 when you place your online order with me during June 2015, then I will send you a little gift in July to say thank you. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. 

And don't forget that Stampin' Up! will donate £2 from every sale of the "Sprinkles Of Life" Stamp Set to the RMHC UK charity - so, by purchasing this beautiful and versatile stamp set, you will be helping to make a difference to peoples' lives, by helping families stay together when their child is ill and being looked after in hospital away from their home.

Well, that's it until next time, so, happy crafting; bring some cheer to someone else and don't forget to look up, to see those silver linings in your life! :)

Lucy x

Click here to find out how you can get two stamp sets for free when you buy a starter kit and join my team before the end of June 2015.