Fusion Butterflies

When I saw the Fusion #4 Challenge, I could not wait to start. I love butterflies! I gathered all the butterfly stamps I have and used them all for this card, except for the Tim Holtz one which did not quite fit in with what I wanted to do. Initially I tried heat embossing with black but when I used my Copic markers, the black smudged! Boo! So I stamped with Memento Tuxedo Black ink, coloured with Copics and then added a bit of glitter.. This is an A4 sized farewell card for work. Thanks for dropping by!

A close up of the colourful butterflies!

Ingredients

Neenah and Core'Dinations card stock, Kaisercraft Tigerlilly, Hero Arts Heart Winged Butterfly, Antique Butterflies, Papillon and Say It All, Stamp-It Filigree Butterfly, Memento Tuxedo Black, Copic Markers, Distress Ink Worn Lipstick, Pink Paislee lace, MME enamel dots, Ranger stickles.

Frame by frame

When I saw the Moxie Fab World Tuesday Trigger - Frame by Frame, I knew what I had to do. I clicked on the image credit and found the crochet patterns for the frames. As I am still a novice at crochet, I picked the easiest pattern and made two in front of the TV (I didn't really pay much attention to what we were watching, but hey, I was spending quality time with my DH)! Once it was done the rest of the card was put together very easily! I'm also submitting this card to Simon Says Stamp - Anything Goes challenge. Thanks for dropping by!

Image credit

Ingredients:

Cardstock - Neenah Solar White

Paper - Pink Paislee Butterfly Garden

Stamp - Hero Arts Antique Flowers and Butterflies, Florentine Messages

Ink - Hero Arts Wet Cement

Others - Panda Regal 4ply cotton, White gel pen

Konnichiwa Butterfly

I would like to share a card which was submitted for the recent PC World Card Making Day Contest and was not selected.  The Heart Winged Butterfly (a new addition to my family) was embossed in black over patterned paper. The lacey circles die cut is also a new addition. I'm submitting this card to the A Blog Named Hero's Challenge#15 -The Ol' 1-2 Punch.

Ingredients:

Cardstock - Neenah Solar White

Paper - Basic Grey Konnichiwa

Stamp - Hero Arts F5158, CL530

Ink - Versamark

Dies - Spellbinders Nestabilities Circles and lacey circles

Others - Seam binding, flower ribbon, pearl brad, black embossing powder

More Chinese Weddings!

Back again with a couple of Chinese wedding cards I made using my favourite HA Chinese dolls. I decided to add a butterfly to the design using the BG Seredipity papers (these are just perfect for this card). I used the colours from the current CR84FN challenge - light pink, tan and cream for these cards. Thank you for dropping by!

Challenge:

CR84FN - Challenge 65 

Ingredients:

Cardstock - Neenah Natural White, Via Vellum Kraft

Paper - Basic Grey Serendipidy

Stamps - Hero Arts LP146, CL272, 657773

Ink - Ranger Archival Jet Black

Others - White gel pen, Kaisercraft pearls, Ranger Stickles

Pink Chevron

I'm still recovering from World Card Making Day! There were so many blogs and cards uploaded on the weekend, it was hard to keep up. I just wanted to finish off a card that I started on the weekend and upload it to the last of the WCMD contests. I have an Off-the-page project which I want to finish off this week, can't wait to upload it next week. My card today has a pink theme to go with CAS-sual Fridays - For the Girls challenge. I combined it with the Hero Arts October sketch and the Trendwatch challenge in the Classroom. I based the design on a previous card I had made here. Hope you like it!

Challenges:

CAS-ual Fridays - For the Girls

Hero Arts - October Sketch Contest

Moxie Fab World - WCMD Birthday challenge

the Classroom - WCMD2012 Challenge 5: Trendwatch

Ingredients:

Cardstock -  Neenah Solar White

Papers - Basic Grey Konnichiwa

Stamps - Hero Arts CL272 657773

Ink - Ranger Archival Jet Black

Dies - MFT DieNamics Chevron, Spellbinders Nestabilities Scallop and Circle

Others - Kaisercraft Brad, Kaisercraft Pearls, Twine from The Twinery, White Gel pen

Black and White Retro

I had to clear all my crafting mess from the dining table last week as we had a family birthday celebration. It gave me a chance to organise my newly assembled Alex drawers from Ikea. It's so nice to have everything neatly filed away in 6 large drawers! I've used the colours of the CAS-ual Fridays challenge (Black and White +One) with this week's Retro sketch. I've also taught myself to crochet flowers as I'd rather make them than buy them. I've had fun making them in baker's twine with various colours. I'm also submitting this card into the Moxie Fab World Gallon/Quart and Pint challenge - White is Gallon, Black is Quart and Red is Pint! Thanks for dropping by!

Challenges:

Retro Sketches - Sketch#29

CAS-ual Fridays - CFC70: Black and White Plus One

Moxie Fab World Card Design - Gallon/Quart and Pint Challenge

Ingredients:

Cardstock - Neenah Solar White

Paper - Basic Grey Picadilly

Stamp - Hero Arts Antique Butterflies

Ink - Ranger Archival Jet Black

Dies - HA framelits, MFT DieNamics scallop edge, Spellbinders Nestabilities Squares

Others - Twine from The Twinery, Kaisercraft Sparklets, Molotow pen

Chevron Butterflies

I've finally weakened! MFT had a sale a few weeks ago and I decided to jump on the chevron wagon! I wanted to get the hexagon dies too but they were sold out in the first day of the sale! Today I went to the first day of the Paperific Expo and found one store with the MFT hexagon die (there was about 6 on display). I didn't wait long before I purchased it along with a Martha Stewart scoreboard from another store. Later, when I went back a few hours later, both the hexagon dies and scoreboard were sold out!! I had a great time at the Expo! Got some new 6x6 pads, dies, stamps and tools - so I can't wait to experiment. I feel a hexagon card brewing.... BTW, I won't be jumping on the Neon train :) - just not me!! Anyway, I've used Basic Grey, My Minds Eyes and Hero Arts in this card and will be submitting it to both the Basic Grey and Simon Says Stamp challenges. The butterfly stamp is repeated, so it is also submitted to Moxie Fab World Repetition challenge. Thanks for dropping by!

Challenges:

Basic Grey UK - Anything Goes

Simon Says Stamp - Anything Goes

Moxie Fab World - Repetition Challenge

Ingredients:

Cardstock - Via Vellum Kraft, Neenah Solar White

Paper - Basic Grey Little Black Dress and MME Indie Chic Saffron

Stamps - Hero Arts Antique Flowers and Butterflies, Hero Arts Many Sentiments

Ink - Ranger Archival Jet Black

Others - Twine from the twinery, white gel pen, MFT Die-Namics Chevron die

Phillip Lim Butterflies

Well I can never seem to pass up a Runway inspired challenge. My card is below and the inspiration design by Phillip Lim is below that. I've used the Hero Arts August sketch and colours from the design. I'm also submitting this card to Moxie Fab World repetition challenge. Thanks for dropping by!

Challenges:

Hero Arts - August Sketch

Moxie Fab World - Repetition Challenge

Runway Inspired - RIC# 18 Phillip Lim Resort 2013

Ingredients:

Cardstock - Neenah Natural White, Neenah Black

Paper - My Minds Eye Indie Chic Citron

Stamps - Hero Arts Antique Flowers and Butterflies, Hero Arts Many Sentiments

Ink - Ranger Archival Jet Black

Others - MFT DieNamics Layered Labels, Kaisercraft rhinestones, Washi tape, white gel pen

Cottage Butterflies

A quick card tonight using Retro Sketch #23 with Basic Grey Paper Cottage (Again! Yes, I love this collection!). The sketch is very simple. I'm also submitting this for A Blog Named Hero Freestyle challenge and Hero Arts CAS card challenge. Thanks for dropping by!

Challenges:

Retro Sketches - RS#23

A Blog Named Hero - Freestyle

Hero Arts - CAS card

Ingredients:

Cardstock - Neenah Classic Solar White, Canson Colourline Black

Paper - Basic Grey Paper Cottage

Stamps- Hero Arts Antique Flowers and Butterflies, Hero Arts Sentiments

Ink - Ranger Archival Jet Black

Others - Kaisercraft rhinestones, Washi tape

Happy 21st Album

I had a very short time to make a 21st birthday guest book for my niece. I am currently on holiday in Thailand and Malaysia and Sarah's 21st is the week after we get back. A quick idea was to use some beautiful 6x6 My Mind's Eyes patterned pads. I selected two pads which had a lot of neutral backgrounds with room for signing. These were glued down to a two strips of 16cm scored cardstock - 16 x 64 cm with a 1cm overlap. The pieces were folded into a concertina with the overlap glued down. The album covers were made from two pieces of 7inch squared cardboard. They were covered with musical wrapping paper which Sarah bought from Florence for me last year. Before glueing the covers down, I attached strips of ribbons in between. These will be used to tie the album down. I decorated the cover with laser cut wooden letters painted with acrylic paint, covered with Distress Rock Candy and coloured with distress re-inkers and the embellishments were fussy cut and stamped. The rest of the card is below. I will be submitting this into Simon Says stamp - Anything But a Card challenge. Thanks for dropping by!

Challenge:
Simon Says Stamp - Anything but a Card Challenge
Ingredients:
Cardstock - 250gsm cream A1 card
Papers - Musical wrapping paper from Florence, My Minds Eyes Be Happy and Indie Chic
Stamps - Tim Holtz Moths and Butterflies, Hero Arts Antique Flowers and Butterflies, Hero Arts CG657776, Hero Arts CG290, Stamp It Flourish Butterfly, Hero Arts Big Ticket
Inks - Distress Ink Tea Dye, Victorian Velvet, Distress Re-Inkers Victorian Velvet and Peeled Paint Ranger Archival Black and Brown
Other - Indie Chic decorative tape, Wooden letters and numbers, Tim Holtz Ideology Keys, Hero Arts Hues Dots, Kaisercraft Rhinesotnes

Happy 21st card

 I've been overseas for a short trip to attend a friend's wedding in Indonesia. Been back a few days and needed to get the house in order. I'm having withdrawal symptoms from card making! Needed to do a quick one for my niece's 21st next month. She went to Paris last year and I wanted to use the Eiffel Tower paper from MME Lost and Found. I decided to use the current Retro sketch challenge and combined it with the Moxie Fab World Gingham Card Challenge. Needless to say, the colours of the card was based on the pink/brown gingham I had in my stash, there was just enough for this card! Since I used Hero Arts stamps and mid-tone inks in this card, I'm also entering this into HA May challenge. Scroll down below for all the details of the card and I have some photos to share from the wedding in Jakarta. 

Challenges:

Moxie Fab World - Gingham Card Challenge

Retro Sketches - RS#13

Hero Arts - May Birthday challenge

Ingredients:

Cardstock - Via Vellum Kraft

Paper - My Minds Eyes Lost and Found Blush (my favourite!)

Stamps - HA Antique Flowers and Butterflies, HA Big Ticket

Inks - HA Bubble Gum, HA Cup O'Joe

Others - MFT Numbers Die, Kaisercraft rhinestones, MS ribbon loop punch, gingham ribbon, washi tape

Our trip to Jakarta

A very good friend of mine, whom I first met in 2008 in Malaysia, got married in Jakarta last weekend. He came to Melbourne last year and met my partner for the first time and they both hit it off so well that he asked us to come for his wedding. We have never met his wife, now that we have, she is so lovely and was very pretty on the day of the wedding and even prettier without makeup! My partner, Robin, was asked to make a speech at the wedding as he was the only foreigner amongst the 850 guests! We spent two nights in Jakarta and two nights in Bandung (3 hours drive away). We had a lovely weekend surrounded by great company! Thanks for dropping by! Here are some more photos from our trip:

The wedding cakes in Indonesia are huge (not real though)

Photo taken at a jungle restaurant in Bandung, taken with no flash. We used our iPhones to light up our faces!

With friends from Malaysia, Indonesia and Australia at a volcanic crater in Bandung

Aussie Scrap Source

I was so excited to get a Flickr mail from Chris Millar a few weeks ago asking for permission to show two of my cards on Aussie Scrap Source. Please find the link here. Pop over and have a look. Both my cards have been previously featured on my blog: - Butterfly HA sketch - 3 Butterflies I'm posting this blog as we enjoy our nice long weekend in Jakarta. This is my first trip to Indonesia, really enjoying the hospitality here and looking forward to attending my friend's wedding tonight with over 800 guests tonight!! Will post some photos when I get back! Thanks for dropping by!

Plumeria Hello

Been busy this week, a little bit behind with a few things I have to do before we go away next weekend for a wedding in Jakarta. I participated in the Spring card swap in the Flickr Hero Art group. I send my card to Marcy and I receive a card from Arlene. It's a little bit daunting as there are some brilliant card makers in the group, so I had to make a really nice card to send. I have been admiring Joy Taylor's Basic Grey card and decided to participate in BG's challenge to case it. The card was made with no stamping using BG patterned papers. I rummaged through my BG 6x6 cards and picked the Plumeria papers as I have not used them yet. I also added some a strip of patterned paper to the envelope. Here is my card and Joy's card is below. I've decided to change the way I post my photos as I am now using LinkWithin and it shows the first photo in a post. This card is destined for Marcy in USA, hope she likes it! Have a great weekend!

Challenge:

Basic Grey - Scraplift This

Ingredients:

Cardstock - Via Vellum Kraft

Paper - Basic Grey Plumeria, Chevron acetate from SSS April kit, Typo Fly Away

Die - HA Framelit 657773

Others - Kaisercraft Brad, Orchid Twine from The Twinery

Hero Arts April Sketches

Here are my two cards made from this month's Hero Arts sketch contest. I only attempted two of the sketches and will try the third one later this month. The first card does not have a sentiment as I wanted to use the butterfly to sit within the scalloped circle. 

The second card is for a friend who just had a baby girl and I wanted to use my new HA stamp (Four Flowers) recently purchased from the Paperific Expo. I originally embossed the vellum on white patterned vellum and was not happy with how it sits on the card. So I dug out some pink patterned vellum which has been in my stash for I don't know how long. I'm glad I'm finally able to use it and was happy with the end result! I have recently found some transparent mounting tape at Officeworks, which was perfect for the flower in this card.

Both cards will be entered (at the last hour) to A Blog Named Hero's first challenge - play favourites , Simon Says Stamp - Use Your Favourite Tool (My Big Shot) and this month's Hero Arts April  challenges.

Thanks for dropping by.

Easter weekend cards

Ah, so nice to have a nice long weekend at Easter. Even though we had a pretty busy weekend catching up with family and friends, I managed to squeeze in some time to make some cards. I came across a very interesting blog page about Runway inspired cards and was keen to participate in the current challenge.
I used a white card as a background and a cream coloured card as a mat (although my photo may not show up the colours correctly). The paper is from Kaisercraft Sweet Nothings and it is so pretty I wanted to show off as much as I could without detracting from it. A vellum butterfly embossed in white and a sheer white ribbon with roses finished off the card nicely. There was no room for a sentiment as I can use this for a birthday or wedding card. I am also entering this card into 'A Blog Named Hero' first challenge using my favouring HA butterfly stamp from Antique Flowers and Butterflies set. Voila!

The inspiration for the card comes from this runway photo:

The second card I had time to make today was inspired by Sweet Sunday Sketch 156:

I used Bo Bunny Gabrielle collection to piece together this card. I also used another one of my favourite HA dogwood stamp, a card I made with this stamp has been submitted for publishing in the Australian Cardmaking, Stamping and Papercraft magazine. I also used my new Martha Stewart acquisition from the Paperific Expo in both cards and topped off with some gems from Hero Hues. This card will be submitted in A Blog Name Hero - favourite HA stamp challenge and the Sweet Sunday Sketch 156 challenge. Again, I did not add a sentiment as the whole card seems too busy for one. This will be added inside the card. I am also entering both cards into the Simon Says Stamp - My Favourite Tool challenge, which is of course the good old Sizzix Big Shot, used for both cards.

My first craft blog

Welcome to my new blogging space where I can share my creative journey with fellow bloggers around the world. I was very excited to be picked as the Terrific Top Three in the recent CR84FN49 challenge using the CardPatterns Sketch 154. I have no one to share the news with, so that is why I wanted to start blogging! I have only just started entering my cards in online challenges and found them fun as well as challenging.

So onto my next challenge.
I made this card last week for the MFTWSC63 sketch challenge. I had to wait for my new Typewriter stamp and die to arrive before I could get going with the card. Once I started, it was so easy! I love the old vintage typewriter and also the fonts on this stamp set!

I am still a novice at this and will be constantly tweaking until I am happy with the result. Thank you for stopping by!

Cecilia