Blowing the dust ....

... off my blog after almost a year!  No idea why, just fell out of the habit (which, let's face it, was an infrequent habit at the best of times!!).  Anyway, I was just sorting my 2017 photos into files and decided to take the plunge back in, so here I am!

I've gone in a slightly different direction with my card-making over the past year .  I've been using much less patterned paper, have been stamping and making backgrounds and using a much more clean and graphic style.  Looking back over the cards I've made, I think my daughter's birthday card illustrates the "new look" quite well.  Here's what I did for her:

I'm entering the following challenges: Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge and Crafty Creations("Anything Goes"), Creative Inspirations ("Something New" - mine is the yellow ink) and Crafty Cardmakers ("Get Inky/Messy").  I made the background by inking a large acrylic block, spritzing with water and then stamping directly on the paper.  I made star stencils and cut out the stars and also made the white letters.  I used black backing cardstock so the negative images of the stars would pop.

Thanks for looking!

On the double ....

.... there are a few times a year where friends' birthdays are so close together that I "cheat" and make identical cards for each person.  Thankfully, they don't know each other, so they'll never know!!

Here's what I made for my March birthday pals, Jocelyn and Olwen:

I'm entering the following challenges: Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge ("Use more than one die or punch"), Creative Knockouts ("Spring is on the Way"), Cute Card Thursday ("Spring is on the Way"), Moving Along with the Times ("Handmade or Die-Cut Flowers"), Fab 'n' Funky Challenges ("Flowers") and Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge ("Layer it Up").

I recently bought this WPlus9 stamp and die set and I absolutely love it - so versatile and I've made quite a few cards with it - many variables for leaves/flowers/centres, etc.  And I actually bought the die set so no fussy cutting those flowers!! The only problem I have is that I don't really have any pigment inks which make for more opaque cover if you stamp a centre on a flower - so I guess I know what my next bulk crafting purchase will be.  I had to be quite cunning about the way I combined the colours so they didn't bleed through or discolour - here's a close-up:

Recipe:

Stamps: WPlus9 "Fresh Cut Florals"

Dies: WPlus9 "Fresh Cut Florals"

Font: "Bakery" dafont.com

Other: Sequins from stash

Thanks for looking!

Nothing like a family ....

.... birthday to force a clean-up in the craftroom!!

My daughter turned 22 and, although I haven't even gotten into the craftroom over the summer, I had to get in there and make something for her, of all people!  It had become a bit of a dumping ground, especially the desk, but I did a swift tidy away and then made a card.  Wow, I was out of practice!!  After a few false starts, I ended up with quite a girly card for my non-girly girl!!  Here it is:

I loosely used the sketch from this week's Mojo Monday and I'm also entering the following challenges: Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge ("Celebrate"), Craft your Passion, Lemon Shortbread and Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge ("Anything Goes") and Crafty Cardmakers ("Summer").

I made a chevron stencil for the embossing paste using a Simon Say Stamp chevron die - it had three rows and I needed lots more, so I die cut on a large piece of card and repositioned carefully to recut about 20 rows.  Very pleased with the outcome.  I heat embossed the flowers with white e.p. and coloured them, then cut them all out and layered on the card.  I put a little bee on the tag as Daisy loves bees - there's one on her most recent tattoo on her arm.  Here's a side-shot of the layers and texture.

Recipe:

Stamps: Stampendous "Flower Swirls"

Die: Simon Says Stamp "Small Chevron Stripes"

Font: "Bringshoot" dafont.com

Other: White e.p., white embossing paste, Prismacolor pencils, homemade enamel dots

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!

That was ....

.... quick - I only posted my mother-in-law's 70th birthday card a few weeks ago, now she's 71!!

Here's the card I made for this birthday:

I used the sketch from this week's Mojo Monday and I'm also entering the following challenges: Craft Your Passion, Lemon Shortbread and Cards Und More ("Anything Goes"), Paper Sweeties (inspiration pic - I went with the colours) and Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge ("One Layer").

I used a technique I saw on Pinterest for the background of this card.  I dry-brushed acrylic paint on kraft and when it was dry, inked over with pumice stone distress ink.  I really like the soft, chalk-like effect.  I coloured the stamped flower with promarkers.  Here's a closer look at image and background:

Recipe:

Stamp: Hero Arts "Peeking Posies"

Font: "KG Always a Good Time" dafont.com

Other: Acrylic Paint, Hero Arts gemstones, rock candy stickles

Thanks for looking!

For old ....

.... time's sake - I was very sad to read an email from Basic Grey saying that they are stopping production - they were the first paper company whose products I really coveted.  I think Scarlett's Letter was the first collection I bought - still love that line - and so many others were divine.  Lovely colours, patterns, buttons, brads - there's an awful lot of it still in my stash. 

I pulled out an old collection, Marjolaine, to make a card for my friend's daughter - here it is:

Forgive the slightly blue cast to the colours - we're having yet another dull, rainy January day.  I used the sketch from this week's Mojo Monday and I'm also entering the following challenges: Craft your Passion and Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge ("Anything Goes"), Crafty Cardmakers ("Punches or Dies"), Little Red Wagon ("They say it's your Birthday") and Moving Along with the Times ("Embossing").

As mentioned already, I used Basic Grey "Marjoleine" papers - such pretty colours.  I stamped a criss-cross background and heat embossed in white e.p. and also embossed in silver around the edge of the sentiment layer.  I hand-drew the number 14.  Here's a side-shot where you can quite clearly see the embossed criss-crosses:

Recipe:

Papers: Basic Grey "Marjoleine"

Stamp: Hero Arts "Envelope Pattern"

Die: Spellbinders "Pinking Circles"

Font: "Bakery" dafont.com

Other: Hand-drawn numbers, silver and white e.p., hand-made enamel dots

Thanks for looking!

Happy 2016 ....

.... to one and all!

Hope you had a lovely Christmas - ours was lovely, mostly relaxing with a bit of nice socialising thrown in for good measure.  Back to school on the 6th - boo - and the time since has been a bit frantic.

I was sorting out photos and came across a few cards that I'd made whilst I wasn't blogging this time last year.  The first was for my mother-in-law's 70th birthday last February.  Here's what I made for her:

I'm entering this into the following challenges: Brown Sugar ("Movie Madness" - how about either "Pretty in Pink" or "There's Something about Mary"!!), Moving Along with the Times ("Spots and Dots" - just a few round the sentiment) and Shopping our Stash ("Something New" - most of this card uses old stash, but the gems were off a new pair of gloves that my daughter got for Christmas!).  I'd like to add my sympathies to the friends and family of Leslie Hanna of Shopping our Stash, who sadly passed away in December.  Her blogging friends are carrying on the blog as she would wish.

Here's a closer view of the main detail of the card - lots of layers and texture:

Recipe:

Paper: Basic Grey "Bittersweet"

Stamp: Kaisercraft "Chevron Texture"

Font: "Hanshand" da.font.com

Other: White e.p,, tangled thread, hand-drawn heart and hand-made numbers.

Thanks for looking!

The countdown ....

.... is on - only two and a half weeks left until school starts again.  We're just back from our holidays in England, we spent most of our time in Kent, but spent one night in the Cotswolds and another in Telford on the way to and from the ferry.  We had a smashing time, loved Kent - the beautiful countryside, villages, architecture and, of course, the White Cliffs of Dover.  I will post some photos on my next post.

While we were away, our daughter turned 20 (that's the end of the teenage years, until next Spring, when Jed will be 13 - what were we thinking?!!!).  I made Daisy's card beforehand and brought it with us - we were camping on the morning of her birthday and gave her a surprise awakening, complete with a bunch of helium balloons outside her tent and a noisy bunch of people with party blowers!

Here's her card:

Update 23/08/14 - this card was voted Top 3 at Shopping our Stash - thank you!!

I'm entering the following challenges: Crafty Girls Challenges ("Anything Goes"),  Little Red Wagon ("Happy Birthday"), Shopping our Stash ("Back in the Day" - no fancy cutting machine for me, just scissors!) and Simon Says Stamp Monday Challenge ("Scratched Up").

I was inspired by a card I saw on Pinterest, with big black thicker letters as a focal point.  I don't have any thickers like that, or a cutting machine that would do them for me, so I made my own big black chipboard letters, painted them with acrylic paint, and finished with a top coat of Mod-podge.  I also painted the button with acrylic paint and then distressed it with sandpaper.  Here's a closer look:

Recipe:

Papers: Basic Grey "Clippings", "Carte Postale" and "Basics Kraft"

Fonts: "Mom's Typewriter" and "Bambi Bold" - www.dafont.com

Punch: EK Success "Binding Edge"

Stencil: Tim Holtz "Stars"

Other: Staples, buttons from stash, hairy string

Thanks for looking!

Giveaway reminder - and a card ....

.... for a very old birthday girl!

My husband's grandmother was 94 yesterday.  She still lives by herself in her own house, about an hour's drive down the country from us, and we headed down with family on Saturday to bring her out for a birthday lunch.  I had only a little time to make a card for her (and frankly, she's always more interested in what's inside the card, she opens the envelope, takes out the card and shakes it to see what falls out!!!) - here's what I ended up with:

I used the sketch from this week's Deconstructed Sketches, although I didn't have time to incorporate all the elements, and I'm also entering this into the following challenges:  Creative Card Crew ("Shabby Chic/Vintage"), Crafty Creations ("S" - my word is Summer), Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge and Crafty Girls ("Anything Goes"), Brown Sugar ("Birthday") and The Shabby Tearoom ("Vintage Love").

As I was so short for time, rather than print or stamp and colour an image, I printed off this sweet vintage image from Pinterest on photo paper.  I love the tinting and big floppy pink bow in her hair, which I echoed by tying a crumpled seam binding bow at the bottom of the panel.  Here's a close-up of the image.

Recipe:

Papers: Crate Paper "Emma's Shoppe"

Other: Seam binding

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

And the birthdays ....

.... keep piling up!  My stepmother and a good friend of mine both have birthdays this week - I usually make a different card for everyone, but this time, time was against me and I made duplicates of the same design for them (well, their names I changed!!).  Here's what I made:

I used last week's Mojo Monday sketch, and I'm entering the following challenges: Cute Card Thursday ("Blue and Green"), Totally Gorjuss ("Die Cuts/Punches"), Creative Card Crew ("Girly") and Party Time Tuesdays ("Anything Goes").

I made a little scene using one of an old Hero Arts set - the stamp is actually supposed to be a leaf, but I always turn it into a tree.  I stamped, covered in contact and cut out some extra little leaves to add a bit of dimension.  Here's a closer look at the image:

Recipe:

Papers: Basic Grey "Marjolaine"

Image: Hero Arts "3 Designer Leaves"

Die: Nestabilities "Lacy Circles"

Fonts: "Coneria Script" and "Precious" - www.dafont.com

Other: ribbon from stash, contact

Thanks for looking!

Gold Fingers ....

.... that's what I had after finishing a card for my friend's 50th birthday.  I do like a little bit of glitter, from time to time, but this card was absolutely laden with it, and the shiny debris was everywhere - under my nails, on the floor and, thanks to a few little spillages, all over one leg of my trousers!!!  Here's what I made:

 

I used the sketch from this week's Mojo Monday and I'm also entering this the following challenges: Sentimental Sundays ("Flowery Springtime"), My Time to Craft ("Mother's Day/Special Lady"), Brown Sugar and Crafty Girls ("Anything Goes") and Charisma Cardz ("Birthday Girls").

 

My inspiration for this card was the gift I bought for Jocelyn - I was out to lunch in Monkstown on St. Patrick's Day and when walking back to the car, saw this jewellery designer's lovely shop - Vivien Walsh - I bought this beautiful bracelet for Jocelyn.  It's gold (appropriate for a 50th birthday, I thought!) and the white stones are jasper.  As the birthday girl is heading off to the sun for her birthday week, I thought this would look so pretty against a tanned arm!

 

 

So I used white and gold as the colours for her card.  I used some very old Japanese paper and some corrugated card painted white and embossed with gold.  I made rolled roses and glittered gold numbers (Jocelyn laughed when she saw them and said "Thanks for keeping the numbers small" - she's not relishing the thoughts of this birthday!).  Here's a close-up of the roses:

 

Recipe:

Font: Notera - www.dafont.com

Punch: MS "branch"

Other: Gold e.p., gold stickles, Japanese paper

Thanks for looking!

Forgot all about ....

.... this one.  I started making this card well over a year ago, at a crop I think.  Then bits of it sat on my desk for months and months until eventually I finished it at another crop.  Then it sat on the desk again for a while, then I put it in a storage box, and when I took it out to write for a friend's birthday today, I realised I'd never photographed or uploaded it!!  Here's the slow card:

I'm entering this in the following challenges: Crafty Cardmakers ("Slap it On"), Papertake Weekly ("Anything Goes") and Shopping our Stash ("3-2-1" - I have 3 banners, 2 flowers, 1 brad).

This card covers the change in style of my card-making - see, I was still spending ages and ages stitching when I started it (the background paper and the circle base for the flower) and then the other layers aren't stitched at all!!  Here's a little side-shot of the dimension on this card:

Recipe:

Papers: Basic Grey "Ambrosia" and MME "Stella Rose Hattie" - I think!!

Stamp: Hero Arts "Doodle Leaf Flower"

Colouring Medium: Prismacolor Pencils

Die: Nestabilities "Eyelet Circles"

Other: Hero Arts pearls, Julie Frog's washi tape, Basic Grey "Sugared" brad

Thanks for looking!

A special surprise ....

Happy Birthday, Calypso!

 

Calypso is having a birthday today!  We are so excited to share with you a Surprise Birthday Blog Hop!!!  Every stop along the hop has a surprise birthday card or project for Calypso created by members of two Design Teams... 

Sentimental Sundays and Scribbles Designs.

Calypso keeps all of us so organized; is such an inspiration to all of us and also is right there with unfailing support and compassion for any of the team members. Her talents abound and we adore her!

Please join us in the (surprise) Birthday Hop for Calypso 

and stop by her blog at the end to wish her Happiest of Birthdays! 

Happy Birthday, Calypso!

Here is my card:

Now head on over to Karolina's blog for the next project!

Be sure to comment on the Birthday Hop post on one or both blogs 

Sentimental Sundays and Scribbles Designs.... 

one person will be randomly chosen (on October 8th) from all comments collected from both blogs to receive a prize in the mail. The prize will be sent to you and we welcome you from anywhere in the world you reside in!   

Here's the lineup in case you get lost 

(Make sure your last stop is CALYPSO so you can wish her a Happy Birthday!)

We'll start with Angi of Sentimental Sundays

Doreen of Sentimental Sundays

Vicky of Scribbles Designs

Jennifer of Scribbles Designs

Archana of Sentimental Sundays & Scribbles Designs

Deanna of Scribbles Designs

Sharla  of Scribbles Designs

Julie of Sentimental Sundays

Karolina of Sentimental Sundays

Lisa of Scribbles Designs

Cely of Scribbles Designs

Sam of Scribbles Designs

Tracey of Sentimental Sundays

Nick of Scribbles Designs

Sandy of Sentimental Sundays & Scribbles Designs

 

(Your last stop is CALYPSO so you can wish her a Happy Birthday!)

 

Calypso 

I have to show you this picture of my cheeky cat, Jess, who wouldn't get out of the way while I was taking the picture of my card - she kept jumping on the chair and sniffing the card, thus knocking it over.  So here she is looking evil and about to strike!!

 

Recipe:

Paper: Glitz "Afternoon Muse"

Stamp: Kraftin' Kimmie "Francesca"

Colouring Medium: Distress Inks

Punch: EK Success "Binding Edge"

Other: Glossy Accents, Dymo label maker

 

I used the sketch from last week's Deconstructed Sketch and I'm also entering this into the following challenges: Kraftin Kimmie ("It's your birthday"), Daring Cardmakers (colour challenge), Moving along with the Times ("Anything Goes"), Cute Card Thursday ("Signs of Distress") and Simon Says Stamp ("Going Dotty").

 

Thanks for looking - and enjoy hopping!!

 

And another ....

.... one - the usual "end-of-summer why didn't I make more cards?" guilt fest!!

This is for a friend of mine who, as you can see, is turning 50.  Her favourite colour is black, and she's a bit of a glamour-girl, so I went for black with a bit of glitz on her card.  Here's what I made:

I used the sketch from this week's Mojo Monday and I'm also entering Little Red Wagon ("Layers").

It was difficult to photograph - there's so much glitter.  I've been meaning to make one of these rolled-up paper candle cards for ages - it's so easy and so effective.  Here's a side-shot of the candles and dimension on the card:

 

Recipe:

Papers: Basic Grey "Little Black Dress"

Die Cuts: Spellbinders "Lacy Circles"

Embossing Folder: Cuttlebug "Textile"

Other: Black Diamond and Platinum stickles, sequins from stash

 

Thanks for looking!

 



First day of ....

.... Autumn, yayyyy!!!  The heatwave ended after about 3.5 weeks, and now we've got the usual kind of summer weather - bit of rain, bit of dry, bit of rain, bit of dry, etc., etc.  I'm hoping it's not going to lash rain tonight - husband and I are going to an gig (and it's outdoors, so really, it's bound to rain!).

My daughter has just turned 19, this is the card I made for her:

I used the sketch from this week's Deconstructed Sketch and I'm also entering this into the following:
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge, Cute Card Thursday, Creative Inspirations and Party Time Tuesdays all have "Anything Goes" challenges.

I bought some new crafty stash recently for the first time in many month, including some new paper pads.  This card is made from a new Basic Grey line "Carte Postale" - lovely colours and patterns. I made a computer-generated sentiment, embellished with some tiny Hero Arts flowers and coloured slightly with Prisma pencils.  I love the Tim Holtz filmstrip - it made a nice frame for the 19 stickers.  Here's a close up of some of the detail:

Recipe:

Papers: Basic Grey "Carte Postale"

Stamp: Hero Arts "Row of Perky Flowers"

Other: Basic Grey "Mellow?" button, Tim Holtz Idea-ology Filmstrip ribbon, MM Tiny Alphas

Thanks for looking!

Back briefly ....

.... hello there, I've been missing in action for almost a month.  We've been having a load of work done on our house - it was originally to happen later on in May, but then the contractor got a "window" for us - so everything, including my craft room, had to be packed away.

I couldn't get away without making a card for my husband's aunt, whose 60th birthday is this weekend, so I scrambled at the outer edges of my packed away craft stuff and used the first paper I found - bits and pieces from a line that I think dates from 2008!!!  Here's what I made:

Bright, isn't it?!!!  I used the sketch from this week's Mojo Monday and I'm also entering this into Shopping our Stash ("Scrap Attack") and Simon Says Stamp ("Flower Power").  Here's a close-up of my image, lots of sparkle on that cupcake, and a side-shot of the card, lots of dimension.

 

 

Recipe:

Papers: SEI "Ally's Wonderland"

Image: Pure Innocence "Hello Cupcake"

Colouring Media: Promarkers and Prismacolors

Other: SEI embellishments and Pink Paislee letters, white pen, glossy accents, diamond stickles

 

Thanks for looking - off to not make anything for a little while more - can't wait to get back to my room, just have to be a little bit patient!!