A Fond Farewell to Firm Favourites

May 27, 2019May 27, 2019 ~ Karen Young

As I don’t have a Card & Cuppa project to show you this week, I’m saying a fond farewell to firm favourites instead.

The current Annual Catalogue is only valid until 3rd June, so you only have until next Monday to order any items on the Retiring List (while stocks last).

Here are just a few of of the Stamp Sets we’re saying farewell to. You can find out more details by clicking on each picture.

First it’s Vertical Greetings, Jar of Love and Balloon Celebration.

Jar of Love & Bunny Builder Punch. Project designed by Karen at HIPPOFROG Designs

Next, we have Petal Palette, Dragonfly Dreams and Falling Flowers.

Card & Cuppa project using Petal Palette. Designed by Karen at HIPPOFROG Designs

Dragonfly Dreams Stamp Set and Touches of Texture Stamp Set from Stampin' Up! Project by Karen Young at HIPPOFROG Designs hippofrogdesigns.co.uk

Finally, it’s Icing on the Cake, Bubble Over and Touches of Texture.

Card & Cuppa project using Icing on the Cake. Designed by Karen Young at HIPPOFROG Designs

Stampin' Up! Bubble Over with HIPPOFROG Designs

Check out the Retiring List to see if your favourites are on it, and grab them while you can. They are only available while stocks last, so don’t miss out.

Happy crafting

Karen Young HIPPOFROG Designs

To order any of the supplies used, click on the product images below to go to my online store.

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Sunflower using the Christmas Bulb Builder

October 6, 2018October 5, 2018 ~ Karen Young

A lovely couple have just moved into their first home together and one of them loves sunflowers, so, I made this sunflower using the Christmas Bulb Builder Punch.

I’ve already made a poinsettia using this punch but this is something very different.

Sunflower using the Christmas Bulb Builder Punch. Designed by Karen at HIPPOFROG Designs

It’s layers of the the bulb shape punched from Daffodil Delight and shaded on the edges using a Sponge Dauber.

The centre is an image from Balloon Celebration tone-on-tone. Stamping stripes from the Playful Backgrounds Stamp Set onto a piece of Cajun Craze card then became a pot.

Sunflower using the Christmas Bulb Builder Punch. Designed by Karen at HIPPOFROG Designs

Using a Light Old Olive Stampin’ Blend, I coloured a strip of Sheer Whisper White Ribbon to make the stem and a set of bow leaves.

It’s all set on Very Vanilla Cardstock as this gives a much softer feel than Whisper White.

Sunflower using the Christmas Bulb Builder Punch. Designed by Karen at HIPPOFROG Designs

The corners are given a softer shape with the Detailed Trio Punch and a spot of Wink of Stella in the centre of the flower adds some final bling.

As the card is a non-standard size, I also made a co-ordinating envelope from some retired DSP.

Sunflower using the Christmas Bulb Builder Punch. Designed by Karen at HIPPOFROG Designs

As you can see, this punch isn’t just for Christmas. It’s much more versatile, and you can make other things using the Christmas Bulb Builder Punch. It’s also the punch you will receive if you attend my Christmas Card Boot Camp Class (not the PM session). Book your place by 13th October.

Happy crafting

Karen Young HIPPOFROG Designs

To order any of the supplies used, click on the images below to go to my online store. Remember to use the Hostess Code if you are placing an order.

You can also join my team here.

Swirly Bird Wedding Bouquet

October 3, 2018October 1, 2018 ~ Karen Young

As this card has been handed over, I can now share this Swirly Bird wedding bouquet with you.

A lovely lady in Cyprus had a sneaky wedding, and as I was visiting, I just had to make her and her new husband a card.

Swirly Bird Wedding Bouquet. Designed by Karen at HIPPOFROG Designs

The circles are from the Swirly Bird Stamp Set stamped in Versamark. They are then heat embossed using Clear Powder to create a shine.

I saw a picture of her bouquet so used the colours as my inspiration. They are Grapefruit Grove, Calypso Coral and Shimmery White.

For the stems, I used the balloon strings from Balloon Celebration and cut round them.

Swirly Bird Wedding Bouquet. Designed by Karen at HIPPOFROG Designs

The Detailed Trio Punch creates rounded corners to mirror the circles.

Swirly Bird Wedding Bouquet. Designed by Karen at HIPPOFROG Designs

A bow in co-ordinating Grapefruit Grove ribbon finishes the project.

Happy crafting

Karen Young HIPPOFROG Designs

To order any of the supplies used, click on the images below to go to my online store. Remember to use the Hostess Code if you are placing an order.

You can also join my team here.

Balloon Celebration meets this year’s In Color Collection

July 7, 2018July 6, 2018 ~ Karen Young

At the end of last month I held an ‘Introduction to In Color’ class where the attendees made 6 cards.

5 of the cards focussed on an individual In Color with one combining them all. This is the project where they were all used.

Ballon Celebation meets this year's In Color Collection. Project designed by Karen Young at HIPPOFROG Designs

I’ve used a Whisper White base card, along with a Smoky Slate layer and stamping to allow the colours to pop.

Each of the new In Colors is punched out with the Balloon Bouquet Punch to create a fun bunch of balloons.

Once they were all attached together, lengths of Silver & White Baker’s Twine with that fabulous sparkle were added to the back.

Ballon Celebation meets this year's In Color Collection. Project designed by Karen Young at HIPPOFROG Designs

The bow is from the Cookie Cutter Builder Punch. Not just a punch for Christmas!

Dimensionals are attached to the back of the balloons to make them look like they are floating. Attaching the bow with a Mini Dimensional cut in half was the most difficult part of the project!

Ballon Celebation meets this year's In Color Collection. Project designed by Karen Young at HIPPOFROG Designs

This is a card that is suitable for anyone and almost any occasion.

Pop back soon when I’ll show you the other cards from the class.

Happy crafting

Karen Young HIPPOFROG Designs

To order any of the supplies used, click on the images below to go to my online store. Remember to use the Hostess Code if you are placing an order.

You can also join my team here.

Last Week’s Card & Cuppa – More balloons

April 30, 2018April 20, 2018 ~ Karen Young

At the previous week’s Card & Cuppa I asked the attendees what sort of project they would like me to create for the following week. The response was male Birthday card.

As we hadn’t used balloons for a while, I designed this project for the sessions.

Balloon Celebration Stamp Set from Stampin' Up! Project by Karen Young at HIPPOFROG Designs hippofrogdesigns.co.uk

The project uses Balloon Celebration to create a bunch of balloons in more muted colours. The combination of Fresh Fig, Night of Navy and Pear Pizzazz is perfect for those ‘suitable for anyone’ projects.

An edge of stamped stars in two colours adds a great background for the balloons to sit on.

Balloon Celebration Stamp Set from Stampin' Up! Project by Karen Young at HIPPOFROG Designs hippofrogdesigns.co.uk

Layering of the Tailored Tag Punch adds a bit of extra interest. The strips behind the sentiment are created by using the Classic Label Punch – a handy top-tip to save having to cut really thin pieces.

Card & Cuppa is taking a break for a few weeks and is returning w/c 14th May. Join us then by booking your place by 18:00 the day before.

Happy crafting

Karen Young HIPPOFROG Designs

To order any of the supplies used, click on the images below to go to my online store. Remember to use the Hostess Code if you are placing an order.

You can also join my team here.

Inspired by Maldives and St Lucia

April 7, 2018March 29, 2018 ~ Karen Young

As soon as I saw the Waterfront Stamp Set in the Spring/Summer Catalogue, I was smitten.

It appears my class attendees were too as they asked for a class on it. This class has recently taken place and all of the projects are inspired by places I’ve visited and are named accordingly.

I’m going to show you the first two projects, inspired by Maldives and St Lucia.

Firstly ‘Maldives’

Waterfront Stamp Set from Stampin' Up! with HIPPOFROG Designs

This is similar to one of projects in the catalogue but it reminded me of my time in the Maldives.

As the colours are quite bright, the simplicity of this project and the vast amount of white space make it work. Bermuda Bay, Crushed Curry, Soft Suede, Pear Pizzazz and Pumpkin Pie is the colour combination for this project.

Masking makes the sun appear on the horizon.

Waterfront Stamp Set from Stampin' Up! with HIPPOFROG Designs

Next we have ‘St Lucia’

I visited St Lucia in 2013 and the stamped double mountains are my version of the Pitons.

Waterfront Stamp Set from Stampin' Up! with HIPPOFROG Designs

For this project it is easier to stamp the mountains first, then the sea, then fill in the sandy areas afterwards. This avoids having green sand where the colours mix! The trees, huts and sun are next, before adding ‘splats’ to the layer.

Island Indigo, Pool Party, So Saffron, Chocolate Chip and Wild Wasabi are the colours for this project.

I love how a combination of first and 2nd generation stamping makes the water come to life.

Waterfront Stamp Set from Stampin' Up! with HIPPOFROG Designs

All of the projects can work with or without a sentiment. There was a sentiment station set up at the class for attendees to use if they wished.

Do you have a favourite out of these?

Pop back soon for the next two Waterfront Stamp Set projects.

Check out my Class Timetable for details of future classes.

Happy crafting

Karen Young HIPPOFROG Designs

To order any of the supplies used, click on the images below to go to my online store. Remember to use the Hostess Code if you are placing an order.

You can also join my team here.

Last Week’s Card & Cuppa – Little Angels

December 11, 2017December 11, 2017 ~ Karen Young

At last week’s Card & Cuppa we made our second of three Christmas Cards.

This time it was the turn of these little angels.

Bow Builder Punch Christmas Angels with HIPPOFROG Designs

Aren’t they cute? There was a collective ‘oooooh’ when I revealed the project and everyone really enjoyed making them.

They use the Bow Builder Punch for the bodies and the 1″ Circle Punch for the face and halo. Cookie Cutter Christmas Stamp Set provides the eyes.

The background of white stars uses a combination of Balloon Celebration and Labeler Alphabet Stamp Sets with Wink of Stella dotted on the top. A Clear Faceted Gem on each little angel adds to the magical Christmas sparkle.

This week it’s our final Card & Cuppa sessions of the year. Book your place by 18:00 the night before.

Also, don’t miss out on today’s fabulous FREE SHIPPING offer, available until 23:00 GMT tonight at my 24/7 online store. Great for picking up those last minute Christmas crafting goodies.

The last date to place your orders for delivery in time for Christmas is 14th December so today’s offer is perfect timing.

Happy crafting

Karen Young - HIPPOFROG Designs

To order any of the supplies used, click on the images below to go to my online store. Remember to use the Hostess Code if you are placing an order.

You can also join my team here.

Lucky flowers

November 29, 2017November 28, 2017 ~ Karen Young

A very talented lady started a new chapter in her floristry training the other week. I made her this bouquet of lucky flowers to wish her all the best.

Stampin' Up with HIPPOFROG Designs - Jar of Love

It is based on this recent Card & Cuppa project.

As she is a fan of orange, I’ve used Pumpkin Pie and Peekaboo Peach for the card, flowers and bow.

In the same way as the previous project, Jar of Love and Balloon Celebration Stamp Sets create the stems. The stamped flowers are from the Number of Years Stamp Set and the other flower use the Tree Builder Punch. Baby Bear Stamp Set gives us the bow cut out with the Holly Berry Builder Punch.

The sentiment is from the Banners for You Stamp Set and matching Bunch of Banners Framelits.

The finishing touches are a strip of mini Gold Sequins, Rhinestones and Wink of Stella.

Although this project uses lots of different stamp sets and accessories, I just love how they all combine together to make something completely different to the original designs.

What ‘different’ projects have you made?

Happy crafting

Karen Young - HIPPOFROG Designs

To order any of the supplies used, click on the images below to go to my online store. Remember to use the Hostess Code if you are placing an order.

You can also join my team here.

Last Week’s Card & Cuppa – Hand-tied Heart Bouquet

November 13, 2017November 13, 2017 ~ Karen Young

At Card & Cuppa classes, I ask my regular attendees what types of cards they would like to make.

A recent request has been an anniversary card so here is the project from last week.

Stampin' Up! Jar of Love with HIPPOFROG Designs

Not only is this card perfect for anniversaries, it’s great for weddings, engagements etc too as it’s sentiment free.

I decided to make a hand-tied heart bouquet. The stems use the Jar of Love Stamp Set and are masked at the bottom to give a hand-tied look. For the central stems for the hearts, I used the balloon strings from the Balloon Celebration Stamp Set. It’s fun to use stamp sets in different ways.

With the three small hearts stamped directly onto the top of the stems, the other three hearts from the Work of Art Stamp Set are stamped separately. They are cut out and stuck on afterwards.

A pretty bow for the bouquet using the Baby Bear Stamp Set and Holly Berry Builder Punch was attached over a length of looped Silver Metallic Thread to finish the hand-tied look.

Wink of Stella on the hearts gives a final touch of shimmer.

If you’d like to join us for a Card & Cuppa session then book your place by 18:00 the day before.

Happy crafting

Karen Young - HIPPOFROG Designs

To order any of the supplies used, click on the images below to go to my online store. Remember to use the Hostess Code if you are placing an order.

You can also join my team here.

A Jar of Love for an Anniversary

September 20, 2017September 13, 2017 ~ Karen Young

My parents recently celebrated their Wedding Anniversary and I of course made them a card.

Stampin' Up! Jar of Love

I decided to make an elegant and stylih card with clean lines.

Obviously I’ve used Jar of Love for the jar, but I reached for the strings from Balloon Celebration to create the Old Olive stems for the hearts. I love using products in unexpected ways.

Real Red and Cherry Cobbler hearts were cut out using the Cookie Cutter Builder Punch. These were then adorned with Rhinestones.

The silver bow on the jar was the most difficult part to make on this project as the ribbon is thin. After a bit of swearing and a lot of love for Tear & Tape, I was happy with the finished project.

My parents were happy with the card too 🙂

Happy crafting

Karen Young - HIPPOFROG Designs

To order any of the supplies used, click on the images below to go to my online store. Remember to use the Hostess Code if you are placing an order.

You can also join my team here.