Happy Valen....

...birthday!  My daughter's best friend is 17 today, so her pals have planned a "Valenbirthday" for her.  They've bought 17 packets of love heart sweets (yum, I love those), love heart jewellery, a tub of heart jelly sweets, and they are sneaking into her house this morning to make heart shaped pancakes for her breakfast.  They asked me to make a card and here's what I ended up with:

I used bright happy colours and lots and lots of hearts!  I've used the sketch from this week's Sketch and Stash (and an old but never inked Lili of the Valley stamp and some new baker's twine).  I'm also entering the following challenges: Bunny Zoe's Crafts ("Celebration"), Daring Cardmakers ("Pretty Hearts and Paper Doilies"), Fussy and Fancy Friday ("With all my Heart"), Our Creative Corner ("Best Friend" and I've got flowers on the pp, hope that counts) and Totally Gorjuss ("Lurve"). 

Here's a closer look at the image, I found her skirt really difficult, the fold lines just don't look right.  Oh well, it'll do!!

Recipe:

Papers: October Afternoon "Modern Homemaker"

Image: Lili of the Valley "Maisie Two Balloons"

Colouring Medium: Distress Inks

Punch: MS "Valentine Lace"

Other: Baker's Twine, Doily Heart, seam binding, needle + thread

Thanks for looking!

Time to get mushy ....

.... again, what with Valentine's Day coming up!!  Our challenge on PaperPlay this week is a timely one, "Love Letters", and we're sponsored by Stamp Fairy.

I've had the usual extra challenge of making a non-soppy, non-girly Valentine's card for my husband - here's what I ended up with this year:

Update 18th Feb: This card was picked as a Top 3 on Shopping our Stash - thank you!

The papers are actually Christmas ones, from two different MME collections, but I think they fit the bill very well.  I do like the letters, I printed them from the computer, backed with chipboard, cut out and covered with contact for shine.  Here's a close-up:

There are tons of Valentine/Love challenges around atm, of course, so I'm entering this into the following: Creative Inspirations, Simon Says Stamp, Truly Scrumptious, Secret Crafter Saturday Challenge and Shopping our Stash.  I'm also entering Papertake Weekly ("Anything Goes").

Here's a side-shot of the layers on the card, lots of dimension:

Recipe:

Papers: MME "Holly Jolly" and "Lost and Found Christmas"

Other: Ribbon from stash, needle + thread, burgundy stickles, glossy accents

Thanks for looking!

Ahem, forget that I ....

.... mentioned anything to do with resolving to create more in my last post.  Flippin' kiss of death, that was!!! 

It's been a loooooooong, dreary January - can't believe we've only done three weeks back at school - feels like twice that.  Oh well, only two more until half term!!  We've got quite a few family and friend birthdays in February, so I hauled myself up from hiberation on the couch and made this for a little pal:

I'm entering this into the following challenges: Fussy and Fancy Friday ("Polka Dots"), Creative Card Crew ("Seeing Red"), My Time to Craft ("Favourite Embellishment" - mine is stitching and ribbon), Passion for Promarkers ("Recycle Something" - the ribbon is from a box of chocolates), ABC Challenge ("Happy Birthday"), Basic Grey Challenges ("Favourite Things" - mine are papers and stitching), Creative Inspirations and Simon Says Stamp both have "Anything Goes" challenges and Truly Scrumptious ("Something Forgotten" - I dug out the Sugar Nellie stamp).

Here's a close-up of the image and the name banner:

Recipe:

Papers: Crate Paper "Emma's Shoppe" and BG "Piccadilly"

Image: Sugar Nellie "Manga Girl"

Doily Die Cut: Cheery Lynn "French Pastry"

Colouring Medium: Promarkers

Other: Pink Paislee die-cut numbers, ribbon from chocs, needle & thread

Thanks for looking!

Well that's that ....

.... for another year!!  Can you believe it's 2012 already?!!  I hope you have all been having a happy and peaceful Christmas time, are rested, relaxing and raring to go this New Year!

I am a bit shame-faced that I haven't posted since the 15th of December - I did make a few more Christmas gift bags, and a card for a 5 year old whose birthday is so perilously close to Christmas that this is the first time I've actually got it together enough to make him a birthday card!!!  I did intend to post those projects whilst it was still December, but didn't, and now it's January there's no point really!

So, on with the new - remember that nephew's birthday card I've been mentioning in every post for the last month and a half?  I .... em .... made it .... yesterday!!!  Here it is:

 I'm entering this into the following challenges: Passion for Promarkers ("Celebrations"), and Kenny K Krafty Girlz, Basic Grey Challenges, Crafts and Me, Simon Says Stamp, Stampin' for the Weekend and Creative Inspirations, who all have "Anything Goes" challenges.

The aforementioned nephew is a drummer in a heavy-metal band, so this Kenny K image couldn't have been more perfect.  I coloured it with pro-markers for a strong and cartoon-like effect - here's a closer look:

I continued the metal theme with lots of copper embossing powder and also with the Spellbinders gears and sprockets.  I got this set back in the NEC in early November as part of an early birthday present from my stepmother, but had to hand it over to her to add to the rest of the gift and wait till my birthday to get it for real!  I cut the gears out of plain old cardboard, but "metalised" them using some fab metallic stuff that you just rub on with your finger.  Here's a side-shot of the dimension and all:

Recipe:

Image: "Metal Drummer" by Kenny K

Colouring Medium: Pro-markers

Papers: Basic Grey "Skate Shoppe"

Other: Doodlebug brads, Stampendous Copper e.p., Spellbinders Sprightly Sprockets, metallic rub-on

Wishing you all a wonderful 2012 - here's to lots more crafting (a definite resolution on my part, anyway!!!).

Thanks for looking!

The countdown ....

.... is on.  Cards all made, 2/3 of them written and posted, almost all gifts bought, none yet wrapped - no probs!!

It's our final challenge for 2011 on PaperPlay today, and the theme is, you'll never guess - Christmas!!!  Thank heavens, 'cos I've made nothing but Christmas cards for the last fortnight.  Here's my finished design:

As usual, it's pretty simple, due to having to mass produce.  I wish I had had time to stitch some red stitching - it would have been sooooo pretty, but I would have had to start the darn things in August to achieve that.  Here's a shot of a bunch all done (tried more but I kept knocking them over like a house of cards!):

The paper is a gorgeous BG "Nordic Holiday" one, I adore the colours - so rich and festive - and the stamp is also from the same line.  Cute.  I added a lot of stickles to the roofs of the houses and to the paper to make it even more festive.  Here's a close-up of a house:

I'm entering this into quite a few challenges, all with Christmassy themes.  They are: ABC Challenge, Crafts and Me, Creative Card Crew, Papertake Weekly, Paper Sundaes, Totally Gorjuss, and Stampin' for the Weekend.
Thanks for looking!

Ever left everything ....

.... until the last minute? That's me this Christmas - I still haven't started the Christmas shopping, the house is a tip, the days are definitely ticking away faster than they should be!! Eeek!!

On the plus side, my card from a few posts ago here has been picked as one of the Top 3 on CES Challenges (yayy - a blinkie!!).

I had time between batches of Christmas cards to do a commission. One of my colleagues asked me to do a graduation card, I hmmed and hawed because I didn't think I would have time, but then she told me the name of the graduate - and she was such a lovely child when she was at our school a million years ago that I had to say yes. So I was in the craftroom most of the weekend between Christmas cards and this:

I used the sketch from this week's Sketch Saturday, and I'm also entering it into quite a few challenges that it fits, namely: The Crafty Pad ("Give it a Punch"), Charisma Cardz ("Spots"), Cute Card Thursday ("It's just a number"), Crafts and Me ("Pearls and Swirls"), Simon Says Stamp ("Anything Goes") - and, this might be a bit cheeky, Mo's Digital Challenge ("Great Outdoors" - it does say the topic is broad - Mo's DT - can we say this girl has just ran outside waving her degree and throwing her mortarboard in the air? If not, I completely understand!).

I used this lovely image from Mo - that robe was hard to colour in black, really it's ended up faded grey but I hadn't time to go over it again. I decided to match it with black/cream papers and add a few touches of bling to make it nice and celebratory. Here's a close-up of the image:

Recipe:

Papers: Cosmo Cricket "Circa 1934"

Image: Mo Manning "Grad Girl"

Colouring Medium: Distress Inks

Other: Fiskars "Threading Water" punch, Hero Arts Smooth Gems, Prima swirl, needle + thread

After I finished, we went into town to meet friends for a coffee, Grafton Street looked gorgeous all lit up and festive in the dark. Here's a pic I found on the internet - not a great shot but you get the idea:

Thanks for looking!

Still. Haven't. Made ....

.... that bloomin' nephew's card, even though I said I would! That's because Christmas is galloping nearer every day, and this week's PaperPlay Challenge is upon us too. Our challenge is "Tags and Wrapping", and our sponsor is Simon Says Stamp

My teamies have made some absolutely stunning gift sets - it really wouldn't matter what was inside 'cos the wrapping is so beautiful.  Pop over and have a look!

I've just finished knitting a scarf as a Christmas gift for my son's teacher, it turned out really nicely and I decided to package it nicely too.  So here's how it turned out:

We've had yuck weather the past few days, it's currently lashing rain with accompanying howling gale, so the pics are atrocious.  Sorry!!  This does look very festive in real life, lovely BG red papers, with kraft bag and black cardstock, accessorised with starry red ribbon and sparkly snowflakes.

I forgot to take a pic of the scarf itself, and now that it's safely tied into the packaging, I'm not going to risk taking it out again.  You can see a peep of it through that round acetate window, though.

Thanks for looking - now, I've got a teenage nephew card to do (deja vu, anyone?!!).