Little Sweetie

Hello lovely people,

I very much enjoyed a day of crafting yesterday, especially as Dr. Hubby was nowhere to be seen for most of the day since he was happily playing a newly released, and much anticipated, game for the Playstation 4!

I had a lovely time experimenting with some more of my new stamps :-)

Now, it's time for a new challenge at As You Like It and we have a lovely theme for you...

YOUR FAVOURITE...FLOWER
...and don't forget to tell us why it's your favourite!

Very appropriately given our theme, our sponsor this time is Wild Orchid Crafts with a £12 voucher

My favourite flower might be a little predictable but it's roses, even more from a card-making sense than IRL!
I love the way roses can be used on both modern and vintage style designs and of course, I love to use 3D roses on my creations, but I have them on the image and papers here too!

It's quite a 'classic Kat' kind of card but I did do a couple of tiny things differently to usual.

The biggest difference is the use of Inktense pencils to colour the image rather than my Copics, and I have to say I am loving these more and more.

I feel happy that I have now figured out how to get a nice flicking effect on the hair which I think adds a lot of texture.

I used a darker Distress Ink to edge my papers and image to give more of an 'antique' feel, so this is Gathered Twigs instead of my favourite Frayed Burlap.

I also didn't take the twine across the entire card...ok, that's a VERY tiny difference - lol!

It's funny isn't it how we all have our favourite die cuts that get used a lot and some that don't...but just sometimes are perfect for a project.  That was the case with this corner die cut that I really like but don't use a lot as it often doesn't seem to suit the card...I hope you agree it found it's niche here!

I have still used my beloved Maja DP but this is some that I haven't used before even though it's from quite an old collection and I am loving the deep blue.

I hope you will pop over to As You Like It and check out the fabulously creative projects from the rest of the team :-)

Thanks for visiting and I really appreciate any comments that you leave,

Card recipe;

Image: Sweetie - Wee Stamps for Whimsy Stamps

DP: Vintage Autumn - Maja Design (available from Live and Love Crafts)

Flowers: Wild Orchid Crafts
Twine: Ivory button twine - The Ribbon Girl

Tag: Sentiment tags - LOTV

Dies: Filigree corner - La La Land

Inktense colours;
Skin: 1800 Baked Earth, 1520 Carmine Pink, 1740 Saddle Brown
Hair: 1740 Saddle Brown, 1730 Oak, 2010 Sepia Ink
Dress / flowers: 0830 Navy Blue, 0840 Iron Blue
Leaves: 1540 Light Olive

Beach huts

Hello lovely people,

I didn't manage to come back and share any cards after posting the pics of my new stash...I did play with some of it but then realised that I can't show you the projects yet - oops!

It's Creative Inspirations challenge time and this week we have the theme...

SEASIDE / SUNSHINE / SUMMER HOLIDAYS

Our sponsor for this challenge is Craftie Charlie with an amazing £20 voucher

I was surprised by the lack of Summery stamps in my collection but I stumbled upon this previously unused stamp with some cute beach huts and some suitably seaside-y papers.

I wanted to include a knot on my design so did a little Google search and came up with this...for anyone interested it's called a carrick bend...I just thought it looked nice!

The DT have made some wonderful samples to inspire you so pop over to Creative Inspirations to take a look :-)

Thanks for visiting and I really appreciate any comments that you leave,

Card recipe;

Image: Dinkies beach huts - Little Claire (also available as digi)

DP: Shoreline treasures - Pion Design (available from Live and Love Crafts)

Twine: from stash

Tag: Sentiment tags - LOTV

Dies: Stitched scalloped edges - MFT Die-namics

Copic colours;
Blue: B91/93/95
Red: R24/29/46/59
Pale grey: W00/0/1
Roofs / ground: W2/3/4

Merry and bright

Hello lovely people,

I'm going to have to start with another one of 'those' apologies for not visiting my lovely blogging friends over the past week.
I have been concentrating on another big piece of coursework, our internet at home seems to be on snail's pace, I still have loads of Christmas cards to make and I haven't even had time to put my decorations up yet :-(

However, I did at least manage to create something for the new challenge at Creative Inspirations and this week we have the theme...

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Our sponsor this week is none other than our lovely Creative Inspirations boss, Natalie, with a  fabulous mystery prize!

Last week I showed you a gift bag I had made and teased you with talk of the matching gift to go in it!
So here it is...a decorated MDF bauble.

I chose just white flowers for the decoration and tried out some new beaded stamens with them.  They come in little bunches but I pulled one apart and popped individual stamens in where I wanted them.

I love the mix of fonts on this sentiment and think it suits the shabby chic style of the decoration perfectly.

Bauble recipe;

DP: Home for the holidays - Maja Design (available from Live and Love Crafts)

Flowers: Wild Orchid Crafts
Twine: from stash

Sentiment: Pink Petticoat

The DT have made some wonderful samples to inspire you so pop over to Creative Inspirations to take a look :-)

Thanks for visiting and I really appreciate any comments that you leave,

Getting creative with a new DT spot!

Hello lovely people,

Well, this is very exciting...I am delighted to announce that I am joining the wonderful and talented DT at Creative Inspirations!
*happy dance*

Just don't tell Dr. Hubby because he already thinks I do too much crafting ;-)

For my first week on the team we have everyone's favourite theme...

ANYTHING GOES

with the option of a sketch
- you can use any previous Creative Inspirations sketch or this lovely new one;

We are sponsored by TimeforTea Designs with a prize of 5 digi images of the winner's choice :-)

I decided to use the sketch because it really suited my style and I just added the extra detail of the fence along the bottom....
...and some extra flowers top left...
..oh, and my circle is a square!
I love sketches but do have a habit of tweaking them - lol!
Good job the sketch is optional, huh?!

This image has a lovely cosy Autumn feel to it...although I am not sure why she has gloves and a hat but an off the shoulder top - lol!
I am really starting to love colouring longer hair with lots of detail even though it takes a while to do, and practice will make perfect!

Card recipe;

Image: Fall love - TimeforTea

DP: Vintage baby and Vintage Spring - Maja Designs (available from Live and Love Crafts)

Flowers: Wild Orchid Crafts
Twine: Ivory button twine - The Ribbon Girl

Tag: Sentiment tags - LOTV

Dies: Lovely fence - Magnolia Doohickeys

Frantage: Stampendous shabby white embossing enamel - Live and Love Crafts
Glitter: Crystal Glamour dust - Live and Love Crafts

Copic colours;
Skin: E000/00/21/11/04 & R20
Hair: E41/43/47
Hat / jumper / socks:B91/93/95/97
Skirt: E41/42/43
Heart / gloves: YG61/63
Trim on socks / jumper: W00/1/2
Boots: E43/44/47/49
Ground: W00/0/1/2/3/4

The DT have made some wonderful samples for you to see so do pop over to Creative Inspirations to take a look :-)

Thanks for visiting and I really appreciate any comments that you leave,

Challenges I am entering;
The Ribbon Girl (pastels)
A Gem of a Challenge (spots +/or stripes)

CAS flowers on Kraft

Hello lovely people,

I have a pair of cards to share with you today that I made a few months back when I was having a play with some new Clearly Besotted stamps.

I thought these stamps would be perfect for cute CAS designs, which I would really like to do more of as a change to my more fussy stamped and layered cards.

I have always loved the look of colouring on Kraft especially with white embossed lines.  It can be tricky to choose colours that work well as lighter colours just look a bit muddy on Kraft, so the first one I did was a nice hot pink...are you shocked?!

I decided these would make perfect birthday cards for a couple of wonderful blogland friends so I did another one in blue...to better suit the recipient!

I also made the blue one up slightly differently with a white border and think they both look good.

To get the flower stems all lined up at the bottom, I just masked off the bottom of the Kraft card with some scrap paper.  TOP TIP: Do not do this with a Post-it note if you are going to emboss...the powder will get stuck to where the note was...Doh!

When it came to stamping the sentiment, I just moved the scrap paper down a little and used that as a guide to placement.

Card recipe;

Image: Scribbled flowers - Clearly Besotted
Sentiment: A little sentimental - Clearly Beostted

Embossing powder - Opaque bright white - Wow! - from Clearly Besotted
Pearls - The Hobby House

Copic colours;
RV17/34/69
B04/06/37

I can hardly believe what a long post that was for such CAS cards!
I think a lot of us crafters find that CAS designs take a lot longer than you think because the placement of the elements has to be just right, and also there is no room to hide any mistakes so everything has to be done really carefully!

Thanks for visiting and I really appreciate any comments that you leave,

Challenges I am entering;
Papertake Weekly (embossing)

Pretty bicycle

Hello lovely people,

It's time for a new challenge at As You Like It and our theme this time is...

YOUR FAVOURITE LAYOUT
...and don't forget to tell us why it's your favourite!

Our sponsor this time is Sweet and Sassy Stamps

My favourite layout is cased from a previous card and any design with this pretty shaped base is a winner for me but I especially loved arranging all the details around the central image circle.
It even makes it really easy to add names/ages etc. which I sometimes find a little tricky!

This bicycle image is a really simple one but is so cute and I think it would be good for some masculine designs too...minus all the flowers etc.!

Card recipe;

Image: Good times - Clearly Besotted

DP: Vintage baby - Maja Design (available from Live and Love Crafts)

Flowers: Wild Orchid Crafts
Twine: Natural button twine - The Ribbon Girl (not available at present)

Seam binding: Limoges blue - The Ribbon Girl

Tag: Sentiment tags - LOTV

Dies: Large frilly frame #10 - Go Kreate, Circle stax - MFT Die-namics, Heart flower swirl - Magnolia Doohickeys

Letters/numbers: magazine freebie stamp set

I hope you will pop over to As You Like It and check out the fabulously creative projects from the rest of the team :-)

Whilst making this card it occurred to me that there must be lots of lovely layouts that I have used before and would be worth revisiting so I plan to CASE myself more often!

Thanks for visiting and I really appreciate any comments that you leave,

Challenges I am entering;
Live and Love Crafts (blue)
Papertake Weekly (take your pick - I used blue and vintage)
Simon Says Stamp (anything goes)
A Gem of a Challenge (one for the girls)

Beach fun

Hello lovely people,

I'm so sorry I haven't been round to see you all much lately; the last week or so has been a 'life gets in the way of crafting' week...how dare it!

It's time for a new challenge at Top Tip Tuesday and our theme this time is...

SUMMER FUN

We have 2 Cute Ink sponsoring us this time and they have a prize of 2 free digi images of the winner's choice.

I decided to make an easel card since I haven't made one for ages and I always like the extra decorating space that comes with an easel - perfect for personalising the design with a name!

Despite the extra space, the embellishment on the bottom section does need to be fairly minimal so the card will fold flat, hence I put all the lovely 3D flowers and layered bow on the top section.

The sentiment comes with the image and I thought it would look cute as a little hanging plaque :-)

I love this chic lady...hmmmm, maybe because I would love to look like this!
Well, I can do the big hat and cocktail part!

Card recipe;

Image & sentiment: Uptown girl Sandy and her Sombrero - Stamping Bella

DP: Shoreline treasures - Pion Designs (available from Live and Love Crafts)

Flowers: Wild Orchid Crafts
Twine: Natural button twine - The Ribbon Girl (not currently available)

Seam binding: Cruise beige - Wild Orchid Crafts
Wooden star / pearls: from stash
Letter stamps: magazine freebie stamps

Copic colours;
Skin: E00/21/11/04 & R20
Hair: E50/53/55
Hat / bag: E40/41/42/43
Bikini / bag / flip flops: B91/95/97
Drink: RV11/R83 & Y21/Y35
Glasses: W9
Sand: YR30/31/E50/51/53

I hope you will pop over to Top Tip Tuesday and check out the fabulously creative projects from the rest of the team and there are some great tips for you too :-)

Thanks for visiting and I really appreciate any comments that you leave,

Challenges I am entering;
The Ribbon Girl (anything goes +/- stars or stripes)
Fussy and Fancy (fancy folds)
Craft your Passion (anything goes)

It's a boy!

Hello lovely people,

I'm back at work and still trying to wade through all the e-mails and jobs that built up while I was on holiday :-(

On a much more pleasant note, it's time for a new challenge at Top Tip Tuesday and our theme this time is...

NAME THAT TUNE
Don't forget to tell us which song has inspired you!

We are sponsored by Stamp and Create with a fabulous prize of a $20 gift certificate :-)

The song that inspired my creation is Babe by Take That as I was a HUGE fan in my teens...and then again when I was a bit older when they re-formed!

Soooooo..it's a new baby card!

I grabbed this cute stamp in my last LOTV splurge...it was quite a big splurge so I have a few more new ones to use yet!
I always seem to be asked for lots of new baby cards though, so it was a good buy.

I love that the Maja Design papers have little strips at the bottom and I have popped a few foam pads under the middle of it to add a little dimension.

Card recipe;

Image: Rocking horse - LOTV

DP: Vintage baby - Maja Designs (available from Live and Love Crafts)

Twine: Ivory button twine - The Ribbon Girl

Tag: Sentiment tags - LOTV
Dies: circle stax - MFT Die-namics

Letters: magazine freebie
Wooden star: from stash, painted with white acylic paint

Copic colours;
Skin: E000/00/21/11/04 & R20
Babygro and bridle: B91/93/95/97
Horse: W00/0/1/2/3/4
Mane: W4/6/8
Teddy: E41/42/43
Rockers: E41/42/43/44
Ground: W00/0/1/2/3/4

I hope you will pop over to Top Tip Tuesday and check out the fabulously creative projects from the rest of the team plus the most wonderful tutorial from Deneen on creating a mini album :-)

Thanks for visiting and I really appreciate any comments that you leave,

Challenges I am entering;
Simon Says Stamp (fave technique/product = stamping and colouring with my Copics)
Moving Along With the Times (inspired by a song...as above!)
Craft your passion (anything goes)

Special delivery

Hello lovely people,

It's my favourite time of the week....the weekend!

I'm about to settle down with a nice glass of red wine and watch a film but first I wanted to share a baby boy card I made for the LOTV Design Collective.

How cute is this little guy?!

I've been at the Christmas papers again for this one but it just shows how versatile they are!
The pretty soft blues are perfect to welcome a new baby.

Card recipe;

Image: Just arrived - LOTV

DP: Winter wishes - LOTV

Flowers: Wild Orchid Crafts
Twine: Ivory button twine - The Ribbon Girl

Sentiment: For you circular sentiments - LOTV

Dies: Old Swedish lace - Magnolia Doohickey

Copic colours;
Skin: E000/00/21/11/04 & R20
Jumper: B91/93/97
Box: E40/41/42/43
Ground: W00/0/1/2/3/4

It looks like the weather is not going to be up to much tomorrow so that's a day of guilt-free crafting for me - yay!
I will also be thinking of my Dad as he takes part in the London Marathon - very exciting :-)

I hope you are having a lovely weekend whatever you have planned :-)

Thanks for visiting and I really appreciate any comments that you leave,

Challenges I am entering;
1.  Papertake Weekly (cute as a button)

Sewing themed apron card

Hello lovely people,

It's time for a new challenge at Top Tip Tuesday and our theme this time is...

BUTTONS &/OR BOWS

It's a double sponsor week as well so we have 2 fab prizes on offer

Whimsy Stamps

and 

Bugaboo

It was my Mother-in-Law's 65th birthday at the weekend so that needed a really special card and after the success of my previous apron card (this one) I thought I'd do a sewing themed one.

I used bits and bobs from all over the place to fit the theme and when I couldn't find what I wanted I created my own, like the little button card and thread spools which I cut by hand and stamped.

I very nearly forgot to add a '65' so had to quickly add the little tab; not so easy to stitch in place with the pocket already stuck down!

I also made a matching tag to pop on her present :-)

Card recipe;

DP: Petal fresh - NitWit collection for LOTV

Flowers: Wild Orchid Crafts
Lace: Danielle  -The Ribbon Girl

Twine: Ivory button twine - The Ribbon Girl

Tag: Family sentiment tags - LOTV

Sentiment: For you circular sentiments - LOTV

Dies: Heart flower swirl - Magnolia Doohickey
Pins: Teardrop ivory pearlised pins - The Ribbon Girl
Charm: Scissors charm - The Ribbon Girl
Ribbon / buttons: from stash

I hope you will pop over to Top Tip Tuesday and check out the fabulously creative projects from the rest of the team and there are some great tips on creating the perfect bow :-)

Thanks for visiting and I really appreciate any comments that you leave,

Challenges I am entering;

1.  ABC Challenge (F is for festive - any holiday or birthday)
2.  Fussy and Fancy (ribbons and lace)

Game on!

Hello lovely people,

I hope you are all having a lovely weekend.  I am having my favourite kind of weekend - a crafty one!  Today I have restarted my Kit & Clowder colouring lessons; I just kept running out of time for them last year so this is the year to get it done!

Now, what's your favourite kind of card to make?

I have lots (mostly involving pink!) but I can tell you what it isn't and that's cards for men, or even worse, teenage boys - eek!

So, I dragged myself out of my comfort zone for this one and you know, well, I don't hate it!

I have to say the image really did all the work on this card as it's so fab and would suit many teenage boys!  Or quite a few adults too I reckon!

I'm off out tonight for the Caterham Seven Club Christmas dinner...yes, you read that right but we do like to be different!
And in case you don't know what a Caterham Seven is...

This was taken on a weekend away in Torquay with the club in September last year.
Our car is the further away green one and that's me in the cream fleece with Dr. Hubby just behind me.

Thanks for stopping by and for any comments you leave; it's so nice to hear from you :-)

Challenges I am playing along with;
1.  Simon Says Stamp (It's a guy thing)
2.  Sweet Stampin' (masculine)
3.  Papertake Weekly (It's all new - new digi image)
4.  Fab 'n' Funky (something new)