Thank You time

Now xmas is over with it's time for a few Thank You cards. This one is made with a stamp my lovely friend Jaki got me for crimble. It's from the sketch on Mojo Monday.

I am challenging myself to use up some old papers before I shop more; these are ancient! I've also used a brad I've had for about a hundred years for the flower centre and a teeny scrap of ribbon. Starting my new year resolution to use up my stash early!

Merry Christmas!

Probably won't blog for a few days during the festivities so MERRY CHRISTMAS to anyone who may stray this way in the next few days :).

Oh and if you haven't seen these new dies from Sir Tim - check them out! TO DIE FOR (pun intended!). I might NEED them all!

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

Today's card is rather appropriate for the present UK weather conditions (although there is no snow here - just as well as I walk to work and back!). I made this one for Grandad. Now Grandad is 90 but he always loves my hand-made cards and always says 'did you make that?' with an impressed look on his face. That makes me happy so I always make him an extra nice card. Bless him.

The snowman's scarf is coloured with Glimmer Mist for a touch of Christmassy sparkle :).

This one started out based on the Sketch Saturday challenge - I am entering it but as I ended up changing the layout a little I am not sure if it counts...

Also entering this one for Stamp Something (holiday somethings) and finally Our Creative Corner where the theme is snow.

Last Christmas card for 2009 - yay!

Happy Anniversary little bro

This is the present I gave to my brother for his first anniversary - paper! I can't take any credit as the layout is from a Tracy Hudson class and is a fairly similar reproduction to her original.

I've not heard a peep from him though so I am presuming they absolutely hate it and it'll be condemned to the downstairs toilet........ ah well, I tried...

Sorry for the lousy picture - it's just so darn dark and grey at the moment.

(ETA - they loved it and apparently it's already hanging on their landing! So pleased!).

Cupcake Challenge

The Cupcake Craft Challenge this week was a really easy one - make a 5x5" birthday card. Here's my quick make using yummy scrummy BasicGrey papers and a new Hero Arts stamp which I absolutely love, love, love!

Also entering this for Charisma Cardz as it's not Christmassy in the least!



Am hoping my friend Nix is too busy to look at my blog cos this is for her birthday, which is on Christmas Day the poor thing. I made a really summery card because I wanted it to stand out among the Christmas cards - it must be hard to celebrate your big day when it's on Christmas Day!

Look what I won!!!

I got a little package I wasn't expecting today - and look what was inside! Isn't it just FAB! I never win anything so I was so chuffed. It was a giveaway from Simply Cards and Papercraft magazine.

Perhaps I was the only one who wanted it!!! It is a bit odd but soooooooo me. Can't wait to ink him up!

Get organised!

This is a little scrapbook organiser I made for my friend as part of her advent parcel. I can show you today as she will have opened it by now.

I made up the pages in Adobe Photoshop using the same Spontaneous Delight Shabby Princess kit I used for my blog header. For the front cover I used a BasicGrey stamp coloured in part with Coloursoft pencils (how much do I love those pencils? One of my best ever purchases).

Now she can plan out all the pages (and more importantly, what purchases are simply essential to make them) my friend now has no excuse not to start that wedding album! I do hope you like it Alix!

For my dearest other half

Today I am sharing the Christmas card I made for my other half. It's using the sketch from Sketch Saturday. I'd been planning this card for ages and the sketch gave me the kick start for the layout I need - thanks guys! As it's Christmas card I am also entering it for Our Creative Corner.

The papers are BasicGrey which anyone who knows me will tell you are a total obsession of mine. I love these Wassail papers - they are last years but I couldn't bear to use them when they were new!!!

He is hard to make cards for - he doesn't like fussy, he doesn't like distressed and being a boy he doesn't like bling or cute either! I think I've cracked it this year though and am pleased with this one :).

Twinkly trees

Cracking on with the Christmas cards now (yes I know there are people who did theirs in July or something crazy but for me before Xmas Eve is a major improvement!).

I made this card using the sketch from Friday Sketchers.

It also fits the Winter Wonderland theme for Stamp Something (quite literally as I happen to have a stamp that says just that which I used here!). Creative Inspirations is non-traditional colours so I think it counts for that too :)

Challenge-tastic!

This one's for my Mum and Dad. I seem to be liking this mauve and white colour scheme this year for some reason - it is nice and calming I think.

The card is inspired by the work my friend - the amazingly talented Isabelle Norris - did in the Jan issue of Craft Stamper. I've used the same stamp set she did, by Katzelkraft, for this card. The background panel is stamped with two colours of Memento ink, the strip at the side is Cuttlebug-ged and wrapped with raffia. I've also stamped a Crafty Individuals background under the tree.

Christmas Planner

I just finished making this Christmas Planner for Mum. The construction is based on one I made with Dyan Reaveley at AFTH last year and it pretty easy to make. I thought I'd share information on how to make one in case anyone is interested.

You'll need:
-Some 6x6 Christmas papers (I used some old Papermania ones)
-A4 cardstock (I used Stampin' Up! Old Olive and Very Vanilla)
-Chipboard or mountboard - two pieces approx 6 1/4" square
-Bind-It-All and o-wire
-Optional: pearls, a holly stamp and swirl stamp, a computer to generate titles, border punch (mine is Fiskars), ribbon.

1 Cut covers 6 1/4" square from chipboard and cover inside and out with papers. As the book is slightly larger than 6x6" there is a border on the covers all the way around and I used two different papers on the inside cover.

2 Add a punched border, ribbon and computer-generated title to the front of the book. Don't add the pearls and bow at this stage - do this after binding.

3 Create the pockets from A4 card - you can get two pockets from each sheet. Cut in half widthwise and score and fold at the 5 7/8" point to make a pocket. I cut a notch from each to make it easier to get the notecards in and out (a tip from Dyan's class I referred to above).

4 Decorate the pockets. I stamped each of the pockets with a SU Rollagraph holly stamp and added a strip of red paper to decorate. The back of each pocket is covered with a trimmed piece of the 6x6 paper. Computer-generate titles for each of the pages (mine say cards, gifts, food, money, plans and misc) and add these.

5 Bind the book with an o-wire - I just punched once as it is lightweight and this saves on wires but you could punch all the way down if you prefer.

6 Make little pages to put into the pockets inside the book - the recipient will write their plans for xmas on these. The beauty of this is the tags can be replaced so the planner can be used over and over again. I simply stamped So Swirly (SU) over them in Old Olive ink and rounded the corners.

Eh voila! I hope my Mum likes it - it is at least useful (she doesn't always appreciate my crafty efforts...).

Also entering this for Charisma Cardz Challenge as it's red and green!

Tis the Season to be jolly - fa lalala la la la la

Ooohh feeling all festive this evening. Xmas music on, tree is up, a gingerbread Yankee candle is fragrancing the room, and mince pies have been consumed in larger quantities than are good for one's thighs....

ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Unpacking the baubles I found these little trees I made last year at AFTH from Sandylion papers and a cute little xmas tree-shaped book. I didn't want to use it as a book so I made baubles out of it for the tree. You can see it in-situ in my oh so classy black tree - Matalan's finest don't ya know!

Sorry the photo's are not better - it's dark in here!

An angelic creation!

I thought I would share with you a card I made for a friend's little girl who is three. She loves all things girly and bling so I am hoping she will like this very lilac, very glittery card!

I'm entering this for several challenges as it fits lots of the ones out there at the moment:

-The Simon Says Stamp Challenge - theme Let it Snow (lots of snowflakes on my card both stamped on the background and die cut embellishments)

-The Sketch & Stash Challenge - it is loosely based on their sketch and the new stash is the angel stamp from PaperArtsy (this is the first time I have used it too).

-The Papertake Challenge - no red and green - check!

-And finally Stamp Something - theme glitzy; I think this qualifies as there is a lot of glitter and shimmer I promise, although not apparent from the photo unfortunately!

Phew!!!

Aw, ain't he cute?

I did this layout a few weeks ago but haven't yet blogged it so am sharing it today. It's another one for my doggie album (well, albums - on the second one already!).

My baby is getting older and his muzzle is going a little bit grey as he does. He's still beautiful just not as puppy-ish as he once was...

I created the background by stamping with bubble wrap and acrylic paint - love that technique. The papers are yummy scrummy K&Co ones which were a bargain in Micheals back in Sept (oh my holiday seems such a distant memory already!).

Challenge card

This is my challenge card for this week's Sketch Saturday. No stamping at all this time - unusual for me. I haven't used this Sizzix snowman for ages but I like how this card turned out. I cut him out of glitter card so he looks extra snowy! The scarf was a happy accident - I put the die cut through the Cuttlebug folder the wrong way but I love how it looks.

Also entering this for ABC challenge - I is for Indigo Blue :).

Me in a dunce hat...

Another little project from AFTH. We created a tag with Claudine Hellmuth paints - which were beautifully vibrant and mixed really well, but I found them very unforgiving to work with.

I'm not really happy with this project - the colour palette isn't me and there isn't enough contrast between the background and the figure. It's good for me to go outside my comfort zone though and I actually finished it so I'm blogging it!

Crafting detritus gets everywhere!!

You know the backs off the little teeny 3D foam pads? Well, been cleaning today and finding them all over the house. There was even one stuck to the dog's bum (no photo in the interests of taste LOL).

The blighters get everywhere!!!

Scrappin'

A bit of scrapbooking today. I made this page a few weeks ago for our team challenge on UK Scrappers. Lots of stamping on this one, using BasicGrey stamps mostly. The buttons are stamped with StazOn to make little embellishments.

It's another page for my Florida album which is finally nearing completion. Only half a dozen more pages to go....

Sugar Bowl challenge

Here's my card for the Sugar Bowl challenge following the sketch. I've used a zig-zag stamp and also have hand-drawn some zig-zag stitches on the paper panels.

Am trying to build up my stash of cards as I never have time to make one when I need one!!!

Sorry for the photo - tis so dark at the moment!

Dyan made me paint!!!

I am soooooooo artistically challenged that I was not a happy bunny when on arrival at the Art from the Heart retreat this weekend Dyan announced that we would be painting - freehand!!

One of the reasons I love rubber stamps is because I cannot draw or paint for toffee. I have a GCSE in art but I cheated and did pottery, so really it's a GCSE in craft!

I'm still not sure about it but at least I did it and the sleigh does look quite festive on the hearth. Some of the shading and highlighting techniques were handy and I am sure I'll use them again. Not a convert to freehand painting though I am afraid...

There is a pic of me and my buddies on Dy's blog - we all look knackered!

Smile!

I am rather pleased with this card if I do say so myself! The stamps are by Art Journey who make some lovely stamps

The design is from a sketch in an old issue of Take Ten magazine. I actually started this card with a view to entering it - I found the half finished article the other day and decided to complete it.

Charming!

Today I thought I would share with you a little weeny bag charm I made ages ago. It's similar to one I created for Craft Stamper magazine earlier this year. It's created from a bottle cap and a Tim Holtz Fragment - the Fragment is stamped and coloured on the back and then glued into the bottle cap. I finished it with a little flower bead and some yummy pink crystals.

It's been on this bag sometime and it seems to be surviving pretty well!

Sketch Saturday Challenge

Another card challenge; another Christmas card! This time I've used the sketch on Sketch Saturday - these sketches are really kick-starting my xmas card making (just as well really!).

I pared the sketch down a little as I wanted to make something I'd be able to duplicate a few times. It's all stamping again - the tree is Stampin' Up!, the background is a really useful stamp from Crafty Individuals and the greeting is from Stamps Away.

I stamped all the elements with a tri-colour Brilliance inkpad (Twilight) so it was really easy to make this one. Even the scalloped circle is inked with the pink part of the inkpad so it all matches perfectly. I love inkpads me!

The photo doesn't really do it justice - Brilliance ink is hard to photograph. Trust me, it's all pretty and shimmery!

Friday Sketchers Challenge

I've made a start on my xmas cards - finally! I've been meaning to do this for ages, but I just kept putting it off (that's the bah humbug coming out LOL).

So thank you to Friday Sketchers which got me started with this week's sketch challenge. This is my first Friday Sketchers card but I loved working with the sketch so am sure I will be back again!

I've used a lovely stamp from Crafty Individuals and the papers are from an Artylicious CD. I added a little lace and a flower with a stickled snowflake brad in the centre for an extra wintery touch.

Blog revival

I am back blogging again - well that's the plan! Firstly I am giving my online home a bit of a facelift and then I might actually get around to posting some crafty stuff...

To create my header I used a freebie digi kit called Spontaneous Delight from Shabby Princess. I'm not a digi scrapper but I do sometimes print papers and elements from digi kits to add to my paper projects. This kit is fab with lovely papers - especially good given it costs no pennies!