We had some fabulous entries last week at The Paper Players for Ann's sketch challenge. I'm looking forward to see what everyone does with this week's challenge. Our hostess, LeAnne, has a Tic-Tac-Toe challenge for us. Just choose a line: horizontal, vertical or diagonal and use it to inspire your creation.
Well, with a box of pre-order goodies under my desk fresh from my time at On Stage Brisbane, the challenge seemed a good chance to try some of them out! There are some gorgeous floral sets in the 2025-2026 Catalogue and associated On Line Exclusive release in May. Here's one of them: Impressions Abloom.
This suite is a real beauty because the stamped images are wonderful - lots of choices of shape and size - and the dies match them to cut and to texture them if you want. But... the dies also offer lots of extra bits like stylised flowers and leaves and a gorgeous oval window with an optional stitched frame. I've rarely seen a suite with so many options.
Really, I had to design my card to try out at least some of those options! That's before you even get to the delicious DSP, the super embellishments and the Pressed Flowers embossing folder - which I have used on the card front here.
Getting back to the business at hand, LeAnne's tic-tac-toe. I ummed about the top row but instead have gone for the first column. I've already raved about the flower images and the dies from Impressions Abloom so that's the first two items. Lavender - well, it's a flower and a colour so I've gone with it as a colour. The three most 'lavender' colours in the SU range are Fresh Freesia, Highland Heather and Gorgeous Grape, so I've based my design around those.

I started by stamping a collage of flowers in Fresh Freesia and Highland Heather, adding in flower centres in Lemon Lolly and Daffodil Delight and some Soft Sea Foam leaves. After cutting out the oval die, I sponged some Fresh Freesia around the bottom edge and some Daffodil Delight around the top. I wanted these flowers to be quite pale so it would appear that they were more distant.
I used Gorgeous Grape, Fresh Freesia and Old Olive card to die cut the flowers and stems, then arranged them in the forefront of the oval. Then I added in the stitched oval die over the top to frame the scene.
A quick emboss with the Pressed Flowers embossing folder that's part of the suite and then everything was adhered to a Gorgeous Grape cardbase.
The sentiment is from the Impressions Abloom stamp set, stamped in Gorgeous Grape and cut using one of the Perennial Postage dies.
As utterly gorgeous as the shimmery embellishments that are part of this suite are, they are not lavender. So I got out my Purple Fine Shimmer Gems instead to finish things off.
Watch out for this fabulous suite in May when the new Annual Catalogue and On-line Exclusives drop.
We'd all love to see what you do with LeAnne's Tic Tac Toe Challenge. You can see what the rest of the design team have done, and link up your entry, at
The Paper Players page.
Here's a quick recap of our challenge rules:
- Create a new paper-craft project specifically for this challenge.
- Upload your creation to your blog with a link back to us.
- Please provide a direct link to the post featuring your challenge entry.
- Please link your card to no more than four challenges, TOTAL, including ours
- Have fun, and thank you for playing with us!
Don't forget to check out the great inspiration from the rest of the design team.
Jan Clothier - You are here
If you live in New Zealand 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 Contact Me tab at the top of the page.
You can stamp with me, and shop with me, from anywhere in New Zealand. Click here.