End of Year Sale

 

As a Thank You for all your support this year, grab yourself 50% off your order by entering the code SANTA50 at the checkout.

(Discount ends 31.12.2013)

 

 

Bring It On….

 

Yup!
All ready for Christmas now, cards made, tree up & decorated, fairy-lights everywhere & presents wrapped. Well, everyone else's presents except Mr C. Sheesh…is he hard to buy for.
I’d love to know what gifts you’ve for adult males this year. If only to ‘borrow’ your ideas.

Above are a couple of samples of the cards that I made for my husbands business clients this year. They had to look professional, elegant and smart & with the help of Clearly Besotted’s Holiday Sentiments stamp set I’m quite chuffed with the end results.

Right…off to buff the baubles.

XXX

Freesia

 

Hey Everyone!
I hope you’re all well.
Here’s a card I made earlier in the year featuring one of my own digi stamps – the Freesia.
Definitely planting more of these next spring.

Have a great week.
XXX

Brrrrrrrr……

 

Sheesh!
It was cold out gardening this morning, I had held back with my first job of the day as it was raining & then, when the skies cleared, I thought it’d be safe to step outside.
NOT!
Rain, sleet & snow does not make for a pretty gardener…needless to say I returned soaked to the core with a frozen bottom desperately in need of a radiator to sizzle itself upon!

I’ll leave you with an image of my cold, red bum & another Christmas card that I’ve made for this year that I’m entering in the Clearly Besotted Christmas challenge.
Enjoy!

Supplies
Stamps - Clearly Besotted Holiday Sentiments, Leafy Accents
Dies - Clearly Besotted Leafy Accents
Inks – Adirondack Dye Ink
Embellishments – Docrafts shimmer dome stickers, Dovecraft glitter

Clearly Sorted!

Brace yourselves!
I’ve finished making this years Christmas cards.
Yes! You heard right…F.I.N.I.S.H.E.D.
Tiz a miracle!

These are a couple of samples of the cards I’ve made for my gardening clients this year. I couldn’t resist using the fabulous Leafy Accents stamps again & Holiday Sentiments set from Clearly Besotted. Gold card candi & Orange Peel stickles adds a touch of festive sparkle

I love these so much I may send myself one…as a surprise…but don’t tell… lol.

Entering it at -

Clearly Besotted – Christmas

Autumn Breeze

Despite the sadness behind this card, I loved making it.
If you can get outside this autumn, on a day when the sun’s shining & before the leaves fall, you’ll see just how beautiful this season is.

Stamps / Dies – Clearly Besotted (Leafy Accents & Many Messages)
Ink – Rangers Adirondacks

Unseasonably Floral

It’s almost the end of October & the last of the lupins has finally been cut down this week in the Tidy Garden. For a summer flowering perennial we sure did get value for money.
So lupins on a card in October? Not such a daft idea after all…lol.

This is one of my own digi stamp designs that you can get your floral mitts on here…

Janey’s Digi Designs 

XXX

Clearly Hooked

Evening Campers!

Sitting here watching DIY SOS – Big Build, big lump in throat, holding back the tears, trying to look cool. What an amazing program that is, there are very few programs where you see people give to others, totally unselfishly, none of this me, me, me that you get with so many other TV shows.

Inspiring & humbling.

Now I better tell you about my card before I blub all over it & the ink runs. I’ve recently discovered Clearly Besotted Stamps, thanks to my bloggy pal Sue, and I’m totally hooked on their products. Beautiful, elegant stamps & many with matching dies…now how clever is that idea.

I’ve made this for my Mother-in-law for her birthday using the the Autumn Flowers & Leafy Accents stamp sets, the Leafy Accents dies & Adirondack inks.

Off to get a tissue & give someone a hug.
Be good.
xx
 

Entering my card at -
Clearly Besotted - Colour Inspiration / Autumn Theme Challenge

Oh Baby!

Good evening Earthlings!

I trust I find you all Woop! Wooping!
I mean…it is the weekend for goodness sake!

The days are flying by, my gardening work is keeping me really busy and finding the time to make cards & draw some new digi stamps is impossible. But I’m not complaining, I love being outside digging, pruning or planting up a new flower bed. I breathe better, my head is clearer & life in the garden is good.
Only the other day a robin landed on my back, he must have thought I was a giant flower in my bright, pink work t-shirt.
It’s a beautiful time of year for leaf colours, dewy cobwebs & making plans.
Soon it’ll be too cold, the ground too hard and most of the gardens will shut down ready to embrace the winter months. Then I’ll snuggle up & hopefully get creating again.

This is a card that I made a few months ago for my cousin and his wife who had a new baby. I used the deliciously cute ‘Baby Boy’ stamp from LOTV & coloured it with my Polychromos pencils.

I love the name they gave him, his middle name is a tribute to my granddad.

So it’s Friday, off to get my weekly fix of ‘Gardener’s World’.

Have a great weekend!
XXX

PS…There’s a SALE on in my shop at the moment. You can get 25% off your entire order…details HERE.

White Van Wo-Man

 

Hey everyone!
I hope you’re all having a fab n’ groovy weekend.
It’s been a busy ol’ week for me, I’ve spent most of it as a complete nervous wreck as I’ve finally got myself a van for my gardening work.
After 3 years of hoicking the lawn mower, a myriad of tools, soil & plants into the back of the family car, it was time to get something more practical.

It’s been a bit of a shock going back to manual gears after the luxury (& laziness) of an automatic and because there are no windows at the back I’m also having to learn to park & reverse using just wing mirrors. Scary stuff but I love it. Just gotta sort out the logo.

Meanwhile, here’s a card I’ve made using one of my own digi stamps, the Aquilegia Flower.

 

Can’t stop…I’ve a van manual to read & Yorkie bar to nibble on.

XXX
 

Big Up to Mother Nature!

The weather for gardening this week has been perfect!
The temperature is spot on, a slight breeze just when I need it, the soil is workable & showers arrive just as I get back in the car to go home.
Best still, no need for applying what feels like an oil-slick of sun lotion. Eugh…hate the stuff!
 

Now, in case you haven’t spotted, I’ve fallen in love with Clearly Besotted stamps & dies. I’ve only got the Honeycomb & Heart sets at the mo’ and a couple of sentiment sets but I’m hooked and hope to buy more soon. Classy, clean, refreshingly original images & right up my cul-de-sac!
So the one above is another Honeycomb creation…

…forgive the slight ‘wonk’ to this photo, looks like my stamping’s gone a bit doo-lally. This is my fav’, using just a sentiment stamp to create a mini background to the heart which has also been stamped but then cut out n’ raised slightly.
 

And finally, another honeycomb card with some bits raised for a bit of vavavoom!

So there you have it, 3 cards, yes 3….the ol’ mojo’s exhausted…off to have a lie down.

Entering the middle Heart card into the -
 Clearly Besotted - Stamp Your Own Background challenge

Hey Buddy-Leia

 

Thought I’d share one of my digi’s with you today, the Buddleia.
The end of summer saw some naked patches start to appear in our garden so a quick visit to my plant suppliers & we now have 2 new additions to our Nectar Bar (flower bed dedicated to attracting insects)…Buddleia.
We have a pink, miniature version, that even had a Peacock butterfly on it while I paid for it and a tall deep purple one called Black Knight.

 

We’ve put the miniature one in a large pot alongside a Fern, a Heuchera ‘marmalade’, a Weigela & a Purple Toadflax to provide all year round interest.
Now we can sit with a cuppa & watch the butterflies feed right under our noses.
Perfect!

 

Buddleia – Janey’s Digi Designs

 

Season’s Greetings Everyone!

 

Yes…before I forget, Happy Christmas!
With only 102 days to go, cards to make, prezzies to buy & wrap and my vocal chords to warm up for ready ‘jingle-belling’, I may not remember to pass on festive salutations.
So…like I said…Happy Christmas!

I’ve made you all a couple of early cards, just in case I forget, using the gorgeous Honeycomb & Happy Days sentiment stamp sets from Clearly Besotted.

 

Stamped using Adirondack ink pads.
Oh…and just in case…Happy New Year too!

 

Entering the first one at - Clearly Besotted – Stamp Your Own Background

Geum in Red…..is Dancing With Me….

 

You’re gonna be singing this all day now…sorry!
But it could be worse…could have been the Birdie Song or Agadoo.
Oh no! You’ve got them ALL in your head now…lol.
Here’s some flowers…forgive me?

Now can’t stop…the weekend beckons….Woop! Woop!

 

Image – Geum (Janey’s Digi Designs)

 

Sorry Eastbourne

Ahoy There Me Hearties!
We’ve just returned from a short break in Brighton where we hung out with all the hip n’ happening folk, frittered a heap of copper coins in the arcades & wandered around the fabulous Lanes.
We also spent a day at Eastbourne where the pace of life was one of peace & tranquillity until we arrived & our daft-arse, barking-mad daughter decided to lay fully clothed in the sea. Discreetly walking around Primark with a dripping wet teenager trying to find a cheap set of clothes wasn’t easy. Nor was trying to crow-bar off a pair of tight-fitting, soaked denim shorts.
Discreetly leaving the beach with a large selection of Friesian Cow-looking stones also wasn’t easy!

 

 

Moving on…My card today features another of my own digi designs, the Foxglove. I wanted to just focus on a section of the flower so I printed it off large on an A4 piece of card, coloured the part I needed & cut that bit out.
I coloured with Promarkers & added a few pearly gems & glitter.

Have a groovy weekend
XXX

 

Proud Mum - SALE!!

My lovely daughter received her GCSE exam results this week & I am positively bursting with pride!!

To celebrate there’s 20% off all orders this weekend if you enter the code PROUD20 at the checkout.
Just click on the badge above to get to the shop…enjoy!!
XXX

 

Forget-Me-Not

Hey All!
The weekend’s almost upon us…Woop! Woop!…the week’s gone so fast.
Here’s a card I made with one of my own digis ‘Forget-Me-Not' which I coloured with Promarkers in traditional Forget-Me-Not tones but you know what…you could colour this any colour you like & create your own posy of new flowers.
In fact….that’s what I’m gonna do now…see yer.
XXX

 

 

Happy Birthday Mr C

Wotcha Everyone!
I hope you’re all having a great week…it seems to be flying by & the weekend’s almost here again. Woop! Woop!
A fabulous day gardening today with a client who shares my passion for all things flowery n’ ‘foliagey’…lol.
So far no storms, torrential rain or snakes…phew!
Twas Mr C’s birthday yesterday & this is the card I made for him. Alas the photo has made it look black when in fact it’s a rich chocklity brown. I’ve used a cute stamp from LOTV, coloured with Polychromos & 2 Memory Box dies for the branch & landscape background.
It’s official…I LURV Polychromos!!
Enjoy the rest of your week.
XXX

TGI the Weekend!

Greetings Groovy Peeps!
I hope you’ve had a great week….I for one am so glad the weekend’s arrived.
I’ve dodged thunder n’ lightning, torrential rain, almost melted in the heat & ‘squealed’ like a right girlie when I uncovered a snake while tidying a customers garden.
Don’t get me started on earwigs…where the blazes have they all come from this year?!
My card today features one of my own digi stamps, the Geum. I’ve printed it twice & layered it up. Coloured with Promarkers, added weeny gems & a sentiment from Paper Smooches.

Entering it at -
One Stop Craft Challenge - Keep It Simple
Crafty Calendar - Anything Goes
Cute Card Thursday - Anything Goes
Crafts & Me - Anything Goes
 

Kids! Who’d ‘Av ‘Em?

Let’s just recap on the kid’s 6 weeks school holiday. We’re one week in & so far we’ve lost our TV & internet service for a few days following a series of violent thunderstorms and now my son has broken his wrist!!
He was out on his bike (without his crash helmet!!) and hit an unseen ditch. He went over the handle bars & now has a broken right wrist, bruised head & swollen cheekbone, grazes to his shoulder & bruising to his left hand. He had a similar accident once before & I bought him a helmet but on this one occasion he left home without it and disaster struck. It’s really shaken him up but he won’t ever leave home without it again….he was lucky it could have been a lot worse.
KIDS - WEAR YOUR BIKE HELMETS – BEING SAFE IS COOL! BEING INJURED OR DEAD ISN’T!!

So….moving onto the fluffy, bubble-wrapped part of my world, here’s a card I made using on of my own digi stamps – Viburnum. Coloured with Promarkers with papers from Doodlebug.

Off to wrap my offspring in cotton wool.
Have a groovy week
XXX

We Did the ‘Time Warp Again!’

Greetings everyone.
I hope you are all well &, if in Blighty, coping with the heatwave?
I had a brilliant weekend with fav’ daughter as I took her to see The Rocky Horror Show live at Milton Keynes. At last…a family member who finally ‘gets’ why I love it soooo much. She too is now hooked. It was an amazing night out & if the show’s heading your way I recommend it 100%!!!!
Back down to earth I have a card for you using one of own digis ‘Apple Blossom’. Coloured with Promarkers, papers from Making Memories & sentiment from Craftwork Cards.

Entering it at -
Kaboodle Doodles - Anything Goes
I Love Promarkers - Anything Goes
Charisma Cardz - Girly
 

FREE DIGI COMPETITION

 

Fancy winning a FREE DIGI of your choice from
Janey’s Digi Designs?

Then join us on our FACEBOOK page for an exclusive competition. You’ve gotta be quick…competition ends Sunday 21st July.

Good luck x

 

Love-In-A-Mist

It’s been yet another scorcher here in ol’ Blighty today. The garden is holding up, mainly coz it’s jammed-packed with plants which helps hold in the moisture.
My card today features my Love-In-A-Mist digi simply coloured with Promarkers.
Love-In-A-Mist (Nigella)are easy to grow from seed. Sow in the autumn & just leave them to get on with it. The foliage will start to appear before the year ends and should make it thru’ the harshest winters. Those growing in the Tidy Garden have been left to drop their seed year in, year out. Delicate foliage, stunning sky-blue flowers & attractive seed pods. Let them pop open & drop their seed & then cut back the foliage when it starts to fade & the cycle will begin again.
Here endeth today’s plant lesson…lol xxx
 

I’m Melting!

I think I may have chosen the wrong career path…gardening in temperatures close to ‘melting’ is not good when you’re a shade-seeking, heat-hating muppet!
And…I bet if I weigh myself tomorrow I won’t have shifted a drop, let alone an ounce.

Oh well…moving sweatingly on…my card today features one of my own digi stamps….the Centaurea – Perennial Cornflower. Most folk have these in the traditional blue form but I have recently got my gardening mitts on 2 other cracking varieties, one is a white petal version that turns pink as it ages & the other is the deepest purple / black. You can see them growing in my garden here at Tidy Gardens by Jane.
Coloured with a combination of Polychromos n’ Promarkers.

Off to find a cool, shady corner this weekend…hope you have a good’n xxxx

Phwoar! What a Scorcher

Blighty is basking in a heatwave at the mo’ but it won’t last coz I’ve gawn n’ dug out the fans & Mr C’s dusted down the BBQ. It’s our annual ‘curse’ to any promising weather!
Twas favourite daughter’s 16th birthday last week….it doesn’t seem like yesterday since we bought her home as a tiny baby from the hospital, but according to the calendar (and the state of her room) she is now 16 and all grow’d up.
So here’s the card I made for her, using an image from D'Arcy's Diaries and coloured with my new Polychromos pencils. Took me a lot of time / research  / courage to finally purchase some of these pencils but I’ve now got quite a few to play with so early days with my colouring skills (just don’t let my Promarkers know there are new kids on the block!)
A hot week gardening beckons….if I don’t melt….see you again soon.
Have a great week xxxx

PS There are few more hours left to get 20% off your order at Janey’s Digi Designs if you enter the code BIG50 at the checkout.

The Random Blogger

Sheesh I’ve missed y’all!
I wasn’t going to post until later in the year as I’m so busy with my gardening but I have made a few cards lately so I thought I’d share one with with you today.
This is one of own digi stamps ‘Pelargonium’ coloured with my well-rested promarkers.

I’m having a wee SALE at the moment, celebrating 50 LIKES on our Facebook page.

You can get 20% off your order by entering the code BIG50 at the checkout at…
Janey’s Digi Designs
(offer lasts for 1 week & ends 8th July)

More ‘random’ postings to follow.

XXX

Goodbye, Adios, Au Revoir, Auf- Wiedersehen, Tot Ziens, Hwyl

 

So this is it…time to say ‘Goodbye’
Having now stepped down from all my DTs it’s also time to step away from this blog for a few months while I ponder life, the universe & everything.
A humongous THANK YOU to everyone who has been following this blog over the years and left such encouraging comments.
An equally uber-mahooooosive THANK YOU to the amazing Design Teams that I have been so lucky to work with too.

I will still be making cards (behind the scenes), designing my garden inspired digi stamps over at Janey's Digi Designs & on Facebook as well as working on my garden blog Tidy Gardens by Jane, but for now…this is it….(sob, sniff, wipes tear from eye).
In the words of the legendary Arnie…
’I’ll be back’
xx
 

Couldn’t leave without one final card using an image from Mo Manning (AKA Mo’s Digital Pencil)Stamp – Big Guys Bike - Mo’s Digital Pencil