They're finished, and ....

.... it's only the 4th of December!!

I finished the last batch of Christmas cards last night, here's what this year's offering looks like:

I'm entering the following challenges: Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge ("O Christmas Tree"), ABC Challenge ("U for Unconventional" - Christmas card with no red or green), Crafty Creations, Moving Along with the Times, Creative Inspirations, Fab n Funky ("Christmas") and Brown Sugar ("Anything Goes").

I made a little scene with heat embossed Neat and Tangled stamps, watercoloured the background, added more heat embossed stars and did edges in gold.  I twisted thin gold thread round hairy string to give and extra little twinkle.  I made up a sentiment and printed onto the card blanks, as I didn't really like the sentiments that came with the stamp set.  Here's a side view:

And here they are all together, before I have to split them up and send them to people!!

Recipe:

Stamps: Neat and Tangled "Winter Wishes"

Font: "KG Sorry Not Sorry Chub" - dafont.com

Other: Black e.p., gold e.p., distress inks, hairy string, gold thread

Thanks for looking!

Bracing Myself ....

.... for the annual Christmas card making marathon!!  Well, I have made a start - this evening's fun will involve twisting copious amounts of fine gold thread around skinny hairy string!!

Before all that started, though, two important things happened - my daughter passed her driving test first time (hallelujah!) and it was my husband's birthday so I made this card for him:

Update 01/12/16- this card was a challenge winner at Seize the Birthday - thank you!!

I'm entering the following challenges: Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge ("Trio-tastic" - I have 3 big stars and 3 tiny stars), ABC Challenge ("T is for Three" - same things!), Crafty Cardmakers ("Embossing" - I have heat embossing), Brown Sugar ("Anything Goes") and Seize the Birthday.

I made the letters, covered them in enamel accents and left them to dry for a few hours.  When I went back up, I couldn't find the "a" anywhere.  After some searching and cursing, I found it stuck to the sleeve of my jumper - it had been there since I put the original enamel on! I added another layer to try to cover the lumps and bumps of wool fibre, but it did still come out a little lumpy in the end.  Here's a side-shot of the card (with lumpy letter a!):

Recipe:

Fonts: "Peanut Butter Cookies" and "Bambi Bold" - dafont.com

Other: Black e.p., black enamel accents, texture paste, hand-made stars and stencil.

Thanks for looking!

Bit of a ....

.... mad scramble here yesterday!  I haven't been crafting much this summer - partly because we've been redesigning our back garden, much gnashing of teeth and pulling of hair as we tried to work all our "must-have" requirements into a pretty small space.  And the other thing is I've taken my stiff neck/shoulder to a physiotherapist after rather a long time (4 to 5 years!!!) of ignoring.  My entire lifestyle from working as a secretary to hobbies of reading, crafting, etc. has conspired to create a perfect little storm of seized muscles, joints and nerves!  Oh well, will all be sorted eventually.  And the garden landscaping is underway - hooray - I'll post some before and after pics when it's done.

But .... yesterday was my little godson's 4th birthday, so a card had to be made.  My son's football match went over time, my step-mother called in for coffee unexpectedly, and the traffic was appalling as I raced to buy a present (ok, I left that very late!), so the card happened in between all that.  Here's what I made:

I'm entering the following challenges: Craft Your Passion, ABC Challenge and Simon Says Stamp("Anything Goes"), City Crafter ("Birthday Wishes"), Try it on Tuesdays ("Children") and Crafty Creations ("Use a Number").

I drew a little template for the balloons and cut out four in bright colours.  I printed out the numbers and letters onto white card and cut them out.  Had I had time, I would have glossy accented either the balloons or numbers or both, but that didn't happen!!  Here's a side-shot of the balloons:

Recipe

Paper: October Afternoon "Weathervane"

Fonts: "Bringshoot" and "Impact" - dafont.com

Other: Sharpie marker

Thanks for looking!

Ok, so Spring has Sprung ....

.... and spronged, and I haven't been blogging.  Again!  We've been travelling a bit over the last few months - end of April went to Italy to stay with friends.  As always, wonderful - I love Italy.  Here's a picture of me on the approach to the Umbrian hilltop town where our friends live.

Two weeks later, we went to Belgium for an International Mini Meeting - we flew into Eindhoven in the Netherlands and stayed there the first night, then on to the campsite.  Brilliant weekend, lots of fun with friendly Mini people from all over Europe and beyond. 

I've made a few cards over the past few months - will post them as challenges dictate over the next few weeks or so.  The most recent was made for my husband's grandmother - 96 years old this week!  Here's what I made:

I'm entering the following challenges: CAS-ual Fridays ("Florals"), Creative Inspirations and Lemon Shortbread ("Anything Goes"), ABC Challenge ("I is for Important" - 96 is fairly important, not to mention impressive!), Shopping our Stash ("4 elements" - mine is "earth" for flowers - and maybe "fire" too, as they are sunflowers!) and CAS-ology ("CAS").

I used an old Papertrey Ink stamp set that my friend, Anne, got for me in America a few years ago, and popped the flowers up for dimension against a sponged background.  Here's a side-shot:

Recipe:

Stamps: Papertrey Ink "Simple Sunflower"

Font: "Bringshoot" - dafont.com

Stencil: Simon Says Stamp "Falling Snow"

Other: Distress Inks, bakers' twine, white e.p.

Thanks for looking!

My boy ....

.... is now 14 - and growing like a weed, seems to be made of arms, legs and feet!!

With the trip to Edinburgh, I was almost too late to make a card for him, and it was a bit of a rush, but he really liked it (well, he made the appropriate noises anyway!).  Here it is:

I used a sort of a combination of this week's and last week's sketches from Mojo Monday and I'm also entering the following challenges: Craft your Passion, Brown Sugar, Chocolate Coffee + Cards("Anything Goes"), ABC Challenge ("B is for ... " boy and birthday and black), Fab 'n' Funky ("Male Birthday") and A Gem of a Challenge ("Boy's Birthday").

I made some acrylic paint on kraft panels, I also used some lovely new stamps - the ink splot I particularly like.  I made the 14 and the J, E and D and popped up the 14 on a spring from an old notebook - here's a side-shot:

Recipe:

Paper: October Afternoon "Seaside"

Stamps: IndigoBlu "Ink Splats" and My Favourite Things "Go with It"

Fonts: "Handwriting Draft" and "Dark Underground" dafont.com

Other: Acrylic paint, black e.p., spring from notebook

Thanks for looking!

So close to ....

.... Christmas now - and I've just posted the card to my friend's son with the right up to Christmas birthday.  Put a non-Christmas stamp on the envelope and didn't use any Christmassy colours - don't think he'll care either way but I do!!!  Here's what I made:

I used the sketch from Mojo Monday and I'm also entering the following challenges: Craft your Passion ("Anything Goes"), Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge ("Just a Pinch" - of e.p.), City Crafter ("The Heat is On"), Papertake Weekly ("Winter Birthday"), ABC Challenge ("X is for Xtreme" bold and bright colours) and Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge ("Die Crazy").

I used three dies on this card - the tag, the spikey circle and the stars - but the number 9 is hand cut from cork that was just too thick to work with any die (and anyway, I don't have any number dies!).  Here's a side-shot of the layers:

Recipe:

Stamp: Kaisercraft "Chevron"

Dies: Mama Elephant "Lots of Stars", Nestabilities "Pinking Circles", Magnolia Doohickeys "Tea Label Tags"

Embossing Folder: Cuttlebug "Tiny Bubbles"

Fonts: "Ariel Black" and "Throw my Hands up in the Air" - dafont.com

Other: Recycled corrugated card, cork, Prima brad, white e.p.

Thanks for looking!

Construction ....

.... time again!

I haven't made our Christmas cards for three years, twice because Jed designed a card in school and last year because I .... gulp, whisper .... bought them!  So I was quite excited by the prospect of making them again.  Had a design in my head and went about ordering the supplies back at the end of October, they arrived, I put them in a pile in the craftroom and they sat there for a few weeks until last Monday week ago, when I made the first one.  Very nice, very pleased - had a craft club meeting on the Saturday so I figured I would make all the components and make up kits to bring along and I'd get the whole lot put together in one go.  Oh Lord, what a palaver.  I spent the whole week making the kits, then went to the club and got only 20 .... TWENTY .... out of 50 done in the day.

But the story has a happy ending - I got most of the rest done on the Sunday and finished up on the Monday.  The second big job of writing the flippin' things is now also done (yay!).  Here's the product of all that sweat and tears:

The light is terrible, we've been having biblical quantities of rain here in Ireland lately.  The cards are white, not blue!!

I'm entering this into the following challenges: Our Creative Corner ("Wish upon a Star"), Creative Knockouts ("Winter Wonderland"), Moving Along with the Times ("To a Special Someone at Christmas" - all my relatives and friends are special!), ABC Challenge ("W is for Warm Winter Wishes"), Crafty Creations ("Happy Holidays") and Little Red Wagon ("Snow Much Fun").

Here's a side-shot of the card, showing all the layers:

And here are all fifty cards finished.  I always think at this point "Isn't it a shame to split them up"!!!

  Recipe:

Stamp: Hero Arts/Basic Grey "Nordic Holiday"

Dies: MFT "Stitched Mountain Range" and Mama Elephant "Lots of Stars"

Stencil: Simon Says Stamp "Falling Snow"

Font: YorkWhiteLetter dafont.com

Other: Bakers' Twine, texture paste, glossy accents.

Thanks for looking!

A first for me ....

.... I've made a card for Daisy's boyfriend's birthday!  He's not her first boyfriend by any means, but none of the others was around long enough to get to the giving-a-birthday-card stage!!

So I faffed around with bits of cardstock and stamps and made this:

I used the sketch from this week's Mojo Monday and I'm also entering the following challenges: ABC Challenge ("T is for Two" - I've got two sprockets, and the number 22!!), Crafty Creations ("Don't be Blue"), Creative Inspirations ("Anything Goes") and Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge ("Wrap it Up").

I wanted to have some white pops on this card to lift the dark blacks and greens - so I white embossed the edges of the patterned paper and the holes that I had punched, and I attached the large sprocket to the card by sewing it on with white thread.  Here's a closer look:

Recipe:

Paper: Basic Grey "Oxford"

Stamp: Kaisercraft "chevron"

Dies: Spellbinders "Sprightly Sprockets"

Font: Arial Black

Other: White e.p., dymo label maker, white thread

Thanks for looking!

I am so good ....

.... at holidays!  I'm definitely in my holiday stride now - like last summer, we've been having a bit of a heat-wave, but I don't do sun, so I've been thoroughly enjoying myself loitering inside with all the windows open, pottering in the shady bits of the garden, and making a fairly respectable amount of cards, for once!!

I'm heading to the afters of a wedding this evening, and here's the card I've made for the happy couple:

I'm entering this in the following challenges: ABC Challenge ("Pearls"), Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge ("Emboss It"), Crafty Girls Challenge ("Anything Goes") and Daring Cardmakers ("Kathy's Style - I've done embossing and foliage").  The said foliage comprises 56 (yes, I counted!) punched leaves, I distressed inked the sides of them all and adhered them to a skinny heart template, then added crackle accents, pearls and stuck the whole thing down on the embossed and crackle-accented background.  Here's a closer look:

Recipe:

Punch: MS "Branch"

Embossing Folder: Cuttlebug

Other: Hero Arts pearls

Thanks for looking!

Giveaway reminder - and late for ....

.... my brother's birthday again, but this time, it wasn't my fault!

He was to come to us for birthday dinner on Sunday.  I scrambled around all day - went to the supermarket in the morning, came home, baked a cake, started on his card, prepped dinner and put it in the oven, back upstairs to finish the card - then the phone rang.  He was still at home and the wipers weren't working on his car.  The weather was too changeable to risk a journey sans wipers, so he had to stay home.  So, I finished the card the next day and posted it, and ate the cake!!  Here's the card (I didn't take a picture of the cake, too busy eating it!):

I used the sketch from this week's Deconstructed Sketches and I'm also entering this into the following challenges: Created with Love and ABC Challenges ("Lots of Layers"), City Crafter ("Birthday Banners"), Simon Says Wednesday Challenge and Brown Sugar ("Anything Goes").

Here's a side-shot of all the circle layers and the strip banner on the card.

Recipe:

Papers: Basic Grey "Granola"

Other: Hairy String

Thanks for looking - and don't forget my giveaway - HERE is the link to the post.

Who's making a guest ....

.... appearance - me!!  I won a challenge back in January on Our Creative Corner and Laura invited me to do a Spotlight post featuring my work.  I didn't hesitate to say "yes" - and today my post appears on the Our Creative Corner blog.

I made a card for my old boss's new grandson, and here it is:

I used a recent sketch from Deconstructed Sketch and I'm also entering the following challenges: Party Time Tuesdays  and Crafty Girls ("Anything Goes"), ABC Challenge ("J is for Just as you Like"), Creative Inspirations ("Lots of Layers") and Stampin' for the Weekend ("Your Favourite Stamp").

 

I still haven't bought any new baby stamps, so I thought I'd do something a little different with the Lili of the Valley one I've used so many times - I stamped on kraft, coloured with prismas and cut out a circle.  Here's a close-up of the image: 

And here's a side-shot of the layers on the card:

Recipe:

Papers: Basic Grey "Persimmon"

Image: Lili of the Valley "Baby Blanket"

Colouring Medium: Prismacolor pencils

Embossing Folder: Cuttlebug "Tiny Bubbles"

Font: "Throw my Hands up in the Air" - www.dafont.com

Other: Nestabilities "Large Pinking Circles" die, Basic Grey "Ambrosia" and "Granola" buttons

Thanks for looking - and thanks, Laura, for spotlighting my work on Our Creative Corner.

Venturing into ....

.... three dimensions.  I don't often make things that aren't cards, but spent a fair bit of time earlier in January wrangling with a sheet of card, paint, mod podge, etc., making a box to hold three Yankee Candle votives.  I did a card to match, and all was sent to a lovely crafting friend called Margie, who is going through a period of ill-health, leading up to a pretty major operation last week.  She has received her package now so I can post the pictures.  Here's the card, first of all:

I used a sketch a couple of weeks old from Deconstructed Sketches and I'm also entering the following challenges: Creative Card Crew ("Recipe - 1 ribbon, 2 patterned papers, 3 pearls/gems"), Party Time Tuesdays ("Anything Goes"), ABC Challenge ("D is for Dazzle") and Creative Inspirations ("Stamping").

I'm really liking gold and gold glitter these days, there are a lot of companies incorporating this look into their lines - I've had this fab lamé ribbon for years, and I dipped the hearts and brad, which were just plain, into glue and them gold glitter - fan-tab-u-lous!!  I made the acetate banner letters and stamped a pretty scalloped circle lightly on textured cardstock for a shabby look.  Here's a close-up:

And here's the box, it's a little bit bockety at the sides, I've altered boxes before but this was the first I've made from scratch (and I learned a lot whilst doing it!):

And here are the two together.

Recipe:

Papers: Basic Grey "Kissing Booth" and Crate Paper "Maggie Holmes"

Stamp: Hero Arts "Scallop Background"

Fonts: "Falling Rain" and "A Little Swag" dafont.com

Embossing Folder: Cuttlebug "Textile"

Other: Ribbon from stash, gold glitter, gold hearts

Thanks for looking - and if you're looking, Margie - hope you're safe at home now!

Glad to see ....

.... the back of 2013!!  Happy New Year to everyone - hoping 2014 is good to you all.  We had a lovely Christmas, restful and relaxing, a nice finish to what was a thoroughly and utterly crappy year.  Oh well, don't look back is what I say!!

I had intentions of doing lots of crafting, but we made a snap decision to decorate Jed's bedroom. It hadn't been painted since before he was born, and although it wasn't terribly babyish, it did need to be done now he's almost 12 and nearly finished primary school. Daisy was away for a week so that meant he could sleep in her room.  We are super-slow and pernickety decorators, so to have a deadline of a week was quite a challenge.  But we did it!!!  Then back to work this Monday.  Sigh!

My husband wanted a thank you card for a very nice and generous customer, he said "Oh something quick and simple will do".  What???  Quick and simple???  Do you know me at all???  Two days (!) later, I had this:

Update 21/01- this card was picked as Top 3 on Creative Colors - thank you!

I used the sketch from this week's Mojo Monday and I'm also entering the following challenges: Craft your Passion ("Fancy Borders/Edges" - the little tab is a die-cut), Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge ("Blues"), Creative Card Crew and Papertake Weekly ("Anything Goes"), Shopping our Stash ("Use something new" - I've used the buttons which came in a big jar that my Secret Santa gave me just before Christmas), ABC Challenge ("C is for Colourful"), Creative Colours and Moving along with the Times ("Thank you").

I used some incredibly old SEI papers - I think they date from 2008.  I made the flower embellishment by rough-cutting it from patterned paper, glueing down onto a couple of layers of white card and then fussy cutting it.  Here's a close-up of the detail on the card:
 

 

Recipe:

Papers: SEI "Dill Blossom"

Die: Nestabilities "Labels 8"

Embossing Folder: Cuttlebug

Font: "Shelter Me" - dafont

Other: Buttons from stash

Thanks for looking!

Dusting off ....

.... my long-neglected blog, oh dear, where has the last month gone?  I haven't been crafting much, but have a few bits and bobs to post, most recently I made another sympathy card, for my step-mum's friend.  Here's what I made:

I used a Deconstructed Sketch from a few weeks back, and I'm also entering Charisma Cardz ("All Distressed").  I love the duck egg blue/brown colour combination on this card - they are the recipient's favourite colours and I hope she likes the card.  I used some very old papers and fussy cut the little medallion.  Here's a side-shot of the layers on the card:

Recipe:

Papers: Cosmo Cricket "Everafter"

Other: Hero Arts pearls, computer generated font

Next, my craft club had our final meeting before Christmas.  We always do a Secret Santa and I gussied up a plain kraft bag to wrap my gift in.  Here's how it ended up:

There are oodles of Christmas challenges out there - I'm entering ABC Challenge ("A is for Almost Christmas"), Totally Papercrafts ("Anything Christmassy but a card"), The Ribbon Girl ("Ho ho ho - Christmas challenge") and Corrosive Challenge ("Anything Goes").

I used some lovely Basic Grey papers, glammed up with some gold card, and made a matching gift tag - here's a pic of that:

 

Recipe:

Papers: Basic Grey "Little Black Dress"

Dies: Nestabilities "Pinking Circles"

Other: Pinking Shears, ribbon from stash

Thanks for looking - will hopefully post a bit more in the next few days!  Don't wait up, though!!

Une carte ....

.... Française aujourd'hui!! Flippin' 'eck, I had to google that spelling, my school French is way past rusty!!  My stepmother's nephew and his wife, who's French, had a baby girl, so I thought I'd give a nod to her French heritage and put the sentiment in French.  Here's what I made:

I used a sketch from a couple of weeks ago on Deconstructed Sketches and I'm also entering the following challenges: Lili of the Valley Monthly Challenge and Stamping for the Weekend ("Anything Goes") and ABC Challenges ("X-tra Special").

I stamped the ubiquitous Lili of the Valley baby stamp yet again!!  About time I invested in a few different baby stamps maybe?!!  Here's a closer view:

Recipe:

Papers: Kelly Panacci "His and Hers"

Stamp: Lili of the Valley "Baby Blanket"

Colouring Medium: Distress Inks

Other: Mesh, buttons

Thanks for looking!