Retro Rubber Challenge #277 - Tic Tac Toe...

Hey,

Welcome to another fun Retro Rubber challenge.

We have a tic-tac-toe board for you this time.

Tic tac toe is always a lot of fun!

I went with the diagonal row - Sparkle, Your Choice, Flowers. For your choice, I went with no markers!

Yep, my card was made with only inks. This ancient set by Concord & 9th 'Hello Lovely' that I have had since 2016 comes with a bunch of random shaped stamps that you can use to add colour to the stamped image.

My sparkle is a bit of bling dotted around and some wink of stella; sadly, I don't think you can see the shimmer and sparkle in my photo :(

Also my sentiment is by Simon Says Stamp and is from 2015!! 

Can't wait to see which row you chose, don't forget to pop over to Retro Rubber, and get inspired by the things the DT have made.

Challenge ends August 7th.

Don't forget to tell us the age of your stamp, that is part of the fun of our challenge, and please only enter 5 challenges, including Retro Rubber.

Cx

Retro Rubber Challenge #276 - Let's get sketchy...

Hey,

Welcome to another fun Retro Rubber challenge.

We have a sketch for you this time.

You know how much I love a sketch! 

I had a completely different idea in mind. But remembered I had these cool Taylored Expressions Freebie 2024 postage stamps. Lisette gave them to me as a Christmas gift in 2024. I chose 3 from the 12 stamps that I thought went well together and would make a great birthday card.

It was super easy to make, I coloured the stamps using Altenew markers. The sentiment is one of many ancient ones that live on their own clear blocks on my desk, because I use them over and over. I have no idea who it's by, but it is at least 10 years old!

Such a cute card!

Show us your interpretation of the sketch, pop over to Retro Rubber, and get inspired by the things the DT have made.

Challenge ends July 24th.

Don't forget to tell us the age of your stamp, that is part of the fun of our challenge, and please only enter 5 challenges including Retro Rubber.

Cx

Retro Rubber #275 - Colour Challenge...

Hey,

Welcome to another fun Retro Rubber challenge.

This time we have a colour challenge for you. This palette was chosen by me, I love ceramics and the plates really drew me in!

I thought this cute set by Avery Elle 'Rawr' that I have had since 2020 would work well with the colours. I basically built a collage of rectangles in the colours, creating a background for my sweet Dinos. I coloured the Dinos using colours/tones from the palette. The banner die is also by Avery Elle, but is ancient and from 2015!!

I can't wait to see how you use the colours, don't forget to pop over to Retro Rubber, and get inspired by the things the DT have made.

Challenge ends July 10th.

Don't forget to tell us the age of your stamp, that is part of the fun of our challenge, and please only enter 5 challenges including Retro Rubber.

Cx

Retro Rubber Challenge #273 - Tic Tac Toe...

Hey,

Welcome to another fun Retro Rubber challenge.

We have a sketch for you this time, created by me!

I love a tic-tac-toe board and I gave this board to my friends on our recent playdate and we all made fun cards.

I went with the 1st vertical row die-cut, blue and stencil.

I used blue distress oxide ink through an old faithful fan stencil by Dutch Doobadoo. I've had it since 2016 and the birthday sentiment is from 2025 by Scrapbook.com

I added a little blue glittery strip to lift the sentiment off the stenciled background.

Fun card, kinda feels masculine.

Show us your interpretation of the sketch, pop over to Retro Rubber, and get inspired by the things the DT have made.

Challenge ends June 12th.

Don't forget to tell us the age of your stamp, that is part of the fun of our challenge, and please only enter 5 challenges, including Retro Rubber.

Cx

Retro Rubber Challenge #272 - Time to get sketchy...

 

Hey,

Welcome to another fun Retro Rubber challenge.

We have a sketch for you this time

You know how much I love a sketch!

I tried a bunch of ideas, that I didn't love! But then I saw this stamp in my stash and it all came together.

I stamped off the edge of the panel and coloured in parts of it.

I searched for the right sentiment for about 2 hours lol!

The main stamp is by Visible Image 'See Everything', I have had it since 2019. The sentiment stamp is by Hero Arts.

Show us your interpretation of the sketch, pop over to Retro Rubber, and get inspired by the things the DT have made.

Challenge ends May 29th.

Don't forget to tell us the age of your stamp, that is part of the fun of our challenge, and please only enter 5 challenges including Retro Rubber.

Cx

Retro Rubber #271 - Colour Challenge - Cotton Candy Spring...

Hey,

Welcome to another awesome Retro Rubber challenge.

This time we have a colour challenge for you - pretty springy candy colours!

These colours were so much fun to work with!

Of course, I had to grab my fave MFT Mini Cloud Edger stencil to create a pretty sky for the card I had in mind. I added a Taylored Expressions grass die-cut and then die-cut the whole panel using a stitched rounded rectangle die.

I love this Mama Elephant 'Little Line Agenda' set (I have had it since 2024). It's always so cute. I coloured one of the lines using the colours from the challenge and added a bit of grey for the bunnies. It's very easy to fussy cut, so I did that and popped it up with some foam tape. I mixed a couple of sentiments to get what I wanted.

How will you use the colours? I can't wait to see! Don't forget to pop over to Retro Rubber, and get inspired by the things the DT have made.

Challenge ends May 15th.

Don't forget to tell us the age of your stamp, that is part of the fun of our challenge, and please only enter 5 challenges including Retro Rubber.

Cx

Retro Rubber Challenge #270 - Theme - Singing in the rain..

Hey,

Welcome to another fun Retro Rubber challenge.

This time we have a fun theme for you - 

Being English, I am not a fan of rain, but I do like the imagery associated with rain - boots, umbrellas, droplets, etc

I dug the 2 Simon Says Stamp sets that I used for this card out of the archives. I have had both of them since 2015! Big Birthday Wishes and Abby's Spring Showers.

I added a pearl to her hat as fun little touch.

Show us your interpretation of the theme, pop over to Retro Rubber, and get inspired by the things the DT have made.

Challenge ends May 1st.

Don't forget to tell us the age of your stamp, that is part of the fun of our challenge, and please only enter 5 challenges including Retro Rubber.

Cx

Retro Rubber Challenge #269 - Tic-tac-toe...

Hey,

Welcome to the latest fun Retro Rubber challenge.

We have a tic-tac-toe board for you this time.

I went with middle horizontal row - Ribbon - Your Choice (tag) - Holly.

The funky holly die-cut is part of a stencil/die set by Taylored Expressions 'Play on Words - Holiday' I got it in 2025. I stamped my tag using the fun Taylored Expressions 'Trendy Tree Farm' background stamp that I have had since 2023. The ribbon is from my scraps bag.

Can't wait to see which row you choose, pop over to Retro Rubber, and get inspired by the things the DT have made.

Challenge ends April 17th.

Don't forget to tell us the age of your stamp, that is part of the fun of our challenge, and please only enter 5 challenges including Retro Rubber.

Cx

Retro Rubber Challenge #268 - Get your sketch on...

Hey,

Welcome to another awesome Retro Rubber challenge.

We have a sketch for you this time.

You know how much I love a sketch!

I went with mini slimline as I thought it worked well with the sketch. I used a Spellbinders embossing folder with kraft cardstock. The little floral papers are scraps from another project. The sentiment is by Hero Arts 'Mixed Sentiments' that I have had since 2013, and it is one of my faves.

Show us your interpretation of the sketch, pop over to Retro Rubber, and get inspired by the things the DT have made.

Challenge ends April 3rd.

Don't forget to tell us the age of your stamp, that is part of the fun of our challenge, and please only enter 5 challenges including Retro Rubber.

Cx

Retro Rubber Challenge #267 - Colour challenge...

Hey,

Welcome to another fabulous Retro Rubber challenge.

This time we have a sweet colour challenge for you..

These are my kind of colours. I loved the image, so I wanted to incorporate rain or rainbows somehow, but I just couldn't get it to work! So I went back to the drawing board, scoured my stamp library, and stumbled upon this gorgeous stamp that I honestly don't think I have ever used!

I used all the colours from the palette to colour my stamped image. I used Altenew markers. I created a fun little border using the colours. All the papers are from the Spellbinders sampler pack. I love their cardstock.

Stamp by Unity Stamp co 'More Than Ice Cream', which I have had since 2022.

Show us your interpretation of the colours, pop over to Retro Rubber, and get inspired by the things the DT have made.

Challenge ends March 20th.

Don't forget to tell us the age of your stamp, that is part of the fun of our challenge, and please only enter 5 challenges including Retro Rubber.

Cx

Retro Rubber Challenge #266 - Luck o' the Irish!..

Hey,

Welcome to another awesome Retro Rubber challenge.

We have a fun theme for you this time..

I don't send St Patrick's Day cards, so my supplies for this theme are limited. But I have this awesome set by Lawn Fawn, and it sparked the idea for this card!

I found an already smooshed green panel in my desk crap pile and added the clover and star stamps from the Lawn Fawn set to it. I stamped, coloured and cut my Alligators from the Neat & Tangled set. Final step was to heat emboss the sentiment. I punched it using my fave label punch by Stampin' Up.

I love the end result, a super cute card for a friend and of course squeezing in a couple of 'gators made me very happy!

I used -

Lawn Fawn 'Lucky Charm' - 2015

Neat & Tangled 'Later Alligator' - 2019

Show us your interpretation of the theme, pop over to Retro Rubber, and get inspired by the things the DT have made.

Challenge ends March 6th.

Don't forget to tell us the age of your stamp, that is part of the fun of our challenge, and please only enter 5 challenges including Retro Rubber.

Cx

p.s dates are when I purchased the stamp, not when it was released.

Retro Rubber Challenge #265 - Tic-tac-toe...

Hey,

Welcome to another awesome Retro Rubber challenge.

This time we have a fun tic-tac-toe board created by me!

I do love tic-tac-toe boards! I went with the middle horizontal row - kraft paper, your choice, embossing.

I had a lot of fun making this card! I paired very old with very new! The embossing folder is new to me, and I got it at a second-hand craft store called Bottom of the Bin - x2 3D folders for $3!! I embossed a piece of kraft paper using it, and it really pops! I dug out a fun set by Stampin Up 'Zany Zoo' (2024) I especially love the gator, but there are quite a few other fun critters in the set. I coloured him with Altenew Markers. I paired it with a sentiment from a freebie set that I have had since 2017!!

I loved this card so much that I made 2 :)

I can't wait to see which row you use. Don't forget to pop over to Retro Rubber, and get inspired by the things the DT have made.

Challenge ends February 20th.

Don't forget to tell us the age of your stamp, that is part of the fun of our challenge, and please only enter 5 challenges including Retro Rubber.

Cx

p.s The year in brackets indicates when I got the stamp, not when it was released.

Retro Rubber Challenge #264 - Sketch time!

Hey,

Welcome to another fun Retro Rubber challenge.

We have a sketch for you this time.

You know how much I love a sketch!

I needed a hello card for a friend, and I thought this awesome set by Avery Elle 'Stuck on You' would be perfect. I used a scalloped circle die to add a bit of interest and the sentiment is also by Avery Elle 'Speech Bubbles'. I love the little faces you can add to the cacti! I coloured them using Altenew Markers.

Supplies: Avery Elle 'Stuck on You' and 'Speech Bubbles' - I have had both since 2020. Scalloped die is by The Works.

Show us your interpretation of the sketch, pop over to Retro Rubber, and get inspired by the things the DT have made.

Challenge ends February 6th.

Don't forget to tell us the age of your stamp, that is part of the fun of our challenge, and please only enter 5 challenges including Retro Rubber.

Cx

Retro Rubber Challenge #263 - Anything Goes...

Hey,

Happy 2026!! 

The Retro Rubber team are back with a new blog! Jane our amazing leader has done such a great job getting the new blog up and running.

We had a few glitches this week, but we will be back to publishing a new challenge every other Tuesday starting January 27th.

Welcome to our first Retro Rubber challenge of 2026.

This time we have everyone's fave challenge Anything Goes!

In 2025 one of my new work colleagues got married. She also lives in Tampa, so I wanted to send her a card. 

She is a fan of animal print, so I thought the embossing folder was perfect, but in white to make it more wedding. I dug out my all-time fave wedding stamp set 'Married' by Simon Says Stamp, and I have had it since 2014!!!

I should have stamped the sentiment before I embossed, but I made it work. I love the delicate flower spray, it is one of my fave elements of this set.

The card was well received and my colleague and her husband have now been married for 5 months!

What will you find in your stash that needs an outing? Don't forget to pop over to Retro Rubber, and get inspired by the things the DT have made.

Challenge ends January 23rd.

Don't forget to tell us the age of your stamp, that is part of the fun of our challenge, and please only enter 5 challenges including Retro Rubber.

Cx

Retro Rubber Challenge #262 - Books books books...

Hey,

Welcome to another awesome Retro Rubber challenge.

This time we have a theme for you -

My Momma was a Librarian, so of course I love books. But these days, I am Kindle-based.

I love these two stamp sets by Avery Elle 'Feels like Home' and 'Feels Like Home Addition', I have had them both since 2022. How cute is that bunny with his/her carrot book :)

I stamped and die-cut all the stamps I wanted for my card. I used Big-sexy (Brother scan'n'cut) to cut the stamps. I CASEd a card I had seen, because I loved the blended background that anchors the whole thing.

I coloured the stamps using Altenew markers, and I played with the layout before I stamped my sentiment, which is from the stamp sets. I mounted everything with a skinnier foam tape to get a bit of dimension but not too much.

Love how this came out.

What book stamps do you have in your stash? Don't forget to pop over to Retro Rubber, and get inspired by the things the DT have made.

Challenge ends September 5th.

Don't forget to tell us the age of your stamp, that is part of the fun of our challenge, and please only enter 5 challenges including Retro Rubber.

Cx 

Retro Rubber Challenge #259 - Colour challenge

Hey,

Welcome to another awesome Retro Rubber challenge.

We have a fun colour challenge for you this time.

I have had this card pinned for a while. I love the green and yellow colour combo, with the navy and grey acting as great neutrals.

I had to use this Unity Stamp Co. 'Erica Girl' stamp from 2016 for this challenge. I really wanted to colour a green jacket lol! The background stamp is by Taylored Expressions 'Shiplap' from 2019.

Show us your interpretation of the sketch, pop over to Retro Rubber, and get inspired by the things the DT have made.

Challenge ends July 25th.

Don't forget to tell us the age of your stamp, that is part of the fun of our challenge, and please only enter 5 challenges including Retro Rubber.

Cx

Retro Rubber Challenge #258 - Happy Birthday!

Hey,

Welcome to another awesome Retro Rubber challenge.

It's time for a Birthday theme -

I came across this stamp set while looking for something else, and I thought it would make a unique birthday card. 

The set is 'Stick with Me' by Jillibean Soup and I've had it since 2017. I cannot get over how cute the cactus is with googly eyes! I decided to draw an outline on the card blank and I am loving that as a detail.

I can't wait to see how you play with the theme. Don't forget to pop over to Retro Rubber, and get inspired by the things the DT have made.

Challenge ends July 11th.

Don't forget to tell us the age of your stamp, that is part of the fun of our challenge, and please only enter 5 challenges including Retro Rubber.

Cx

Retro Rubber Challenge #257 - Tic Tac Toe..

Hey,

Welcome to another fun Retro Rubber challenge.

We have a fun tic tac toe board for you this time.

I was spoilt for choice with this board. In the end, I went with the diagonal row, top left to bottom right - Sequins, Shaker Card and Die Cut.

I had cut this shaker card idea about a year or so ago, and it was just languishing on my desk! To create this card, I cut x2 panels of the pretty floral paper and affixed one of them to my card blank. I die-cut a circle from the other panel and added some acetate and foam tape to make it into a shaker panel. The sequin mix in my shaker is very cute, it has teeny tiny little butterflies in it too.

The sentiment is from one of my all-time fave stamp sets by Neat and Tangled 'Awesome' I have had it since 2016.

I stamped the sentiment in navy ink as I thought it would fit better with the colours of the paper.

Fun card, I so rarely make shakers, which I might need to correct :)

Which row will you choose? Pop on over to Retro Rubber, and get inspired by the things the DT have made.

Challenge ends June 27.

Don't forget to tell us the age of your stamp, that is part of the fun of our challenge, and please only enter 5 challenges including Retro Rubber.

Cx

Retro Rubber Challenge #256 - Time to get sketchy...

Hey,

Welcome to another fun Retro Rubber challenge.

We have a sketch for you this time.

You know how much I love a sketch!

I decided to make my card a mini slim. I love Taylored Expressions cut-to-size Kraft card stock panels. I used one here and a Tim Holtz heart stencil with Festive Berries Distress Oxide ink. I splattered a bit of water over the stenciled hearts for a bit of interest. 

I knew when I saw the sketch that I would dig out the awesome Vertical Greetings set by Stampin' Up, which I've had since 2016. I cut my panel to fit the sketch and added the fun sentiment. 

Show us your interpretation of the sketch, pop over to Retro Rubber, and get inspired by the things the DT have made.

Challenge ends June 13th.

Don't forget to tell us the age of your stamp, that is part of the fun of our challenge, and please only enter 5 challenges including Retro Rubber.

Cx

Retro Rubber Challenge #255 - Colour challenge..

Hey,

Welcome to another fun Retro Rubber challenge.

This time we have a fun colour challenge for you. 

These are my kind of colours!

When I was digging through my stash, I found the amazing piece of patterned paper that you see on my card, it's like the colour palette for the challenge was built using this!

I stamped the sentiment (by Stampin' Up 'Best Butterflies' I've had it since 2022) onto a piece of coordinating solid cardstock using Altenew Lagoon ink. I dug out an ancient set of Happy dies by WPlus9 - I've had them since 2014 and they were my most overused dies for a while. I cut the Happy from lime green to coordinate with the palette.

Simple, easy card. That I tucked in my bestie's luggage before she left on Sunday :) She has been here for 3 weeks and it was lovely to have her here for so long!

How will you use the colours? Be sure to pop over to Retro Rubber, and get inspired by the things the DT have made.

Challenge ends March 30th.

Don't forget to tell us the age of your stamp, that is part of the fun of our challenge, and please only enter 5 challenges including Retro Rubber.

Cx