May All Your Dreams Come True

Today I have a fun little fairy-tale inspired birthday card to share with you...

I hope you can see the glimmer mist that I have spritzed on the kraft cardstock in the background. This was a very sweet gift from one of my lovely blog buddies, Debbie P. Thanks again Debbie I love it!

The colours I have used on this card were inspired by the pretty colours in my beautiful new mug by ioco (it was sitting on my craft desk at the time). I picked up this mug at adoretea while I was stocking up on flavoured Rooibos last week.

Project Recipe:

Cardstock: Kraft (Stampin' Up!), Shimmer White (Misc.) and Blending Cardstock (X-Press It)
Ink: Tuxedo Black Memento (Tsukineko)
Stamps: Critters Ever After (Lawn Fawn)
Dies: Nested Labels 9 (Spellbinders) and Clouds (Misc.)
Accessories: Brick Wall embossing folder (DoCrafts), So Swirly embossing folder (Cuttlebug), Gimmer Mist (Debbie P.), Crystal Effects (Stampin' Up!), Copic Markers, Fly a Kite patterned paper - My Minds Eye.


That's all! Have a lovely weekend...

Blogged to: Straight Lines - Silverchair, Computer Games - Mi-Sex, My People - The Presets and Supermassive Blackhole - Muse.

There She Goes #157 - Sketch Challenge

I have a bit of a thing for the beautiful stamps at There She Goes...so when I saw they had a sketch challenge up and running, I thought I'd have to give it a go. Here is the Sketch...

And this is the card I have come up with...

 I have taken a bit of creative license with the layout, but you can still see the essential elements.

I even pulled out the Crystal Effects for the ghastly green alien dots and the icy moon craters...as you do! I haven't made a project recipe for some time, but I just felt like it tonight...

Project Recipe:

Cardstock: Basic Black (Stampin' Up!) and Blending Cardstock (X-Press It)
Patterned Paper: Blast-off (Three Bugs in a Rug)
Ink: Memento Black (Tsukineko)
Stamps: Out of This World (There She Goes)
Accessories: Crystal Effects (Stampin' Up!), Copics, Paper-piercer, White Gel Pen, Seam Binding, Hodge Podge (Stampin' Up!).

Well, that's it from me. Thanks for stopping for a peek.
PS. Happy Birthday Jessica!

Blogged to: My Delirium - Ladyhawke, Original Sin - INXS, You're So Vain - Carly Simon and Sunshine After the Rain (Berri).

Party Fun

I mean't to explain the lack of papercrafting that's been going on in this neck of the woods. Well...the lack of blogged papercrafting, at any rate. I've had a lot on recently, but there has been some crafting going on in the background, just no time to blog it!

April/May is party central around here, and I've been dabbling with pretty clip art, digital scrapbook papers and Photoshop. I made some party place-name cards and party bag toppers with some beautiful goodies from Stockberry Studio on Etsy, and using a groovy new curves template by Rita of The Coffeeshop Blog (thanks so much Rita - you rock!!!)...

 I also managed to squeeze in a little birthday cake. Not one of my finer creations, but fun to make and well-received by the requester/birthday girl nonetheless...

Waaaaaay past my bedtime now, and tomorrow is another big day.

Blogged to: Hungry Town - Big Pig, Eagle Rock - Daddy Cool and True Faith 94 - New Order.

Hey, Little Lady...

Just a rooley, trooley quick one today...

I have been dreaming of making an easel card ever since I set eyes on Bronwyn's simply gorgeous creations.

This is what I came up with over hot cross buns this weekend...

No time to explain...hubby is now marching about and pointedly looking at the time. I need to go!

Have a great day.

Blogged to: Where the Streets Have No Name - U2, Halo/Walking on Sunshine - Glee Cast, Addicted to Bass - Puretone and Vienna - Ultravox.

Pirate Punch Art Shadowbox Card...

This week's challenge at Just Add Ink is to 'Just Add Beaches'! How could I possibly go past such a warm and sunny sounding opportunity? Living in a cold, palm tree-less, land-locked territory like we do, I enjoy thinking about the beach...even if it means re-creating it with cardboard (how sad does that sound ;-)!

I must also quickly give a big thanks to: Kim, for inspiring me with her pirate-themed card, check it out here, and Nikki, for inspiring me with her port-holed card, see it here. Thanks ladies!

Now, I've got ink all over my hands, glue dots under my fingernails, little bits of dimensional backing paper stuck to my clothes, and 'Wind Beneath My Wings' playing over and over in my head. I think I need a glass of wine!

Hope you had a good weekend,

Hip-hippo-ray! Punch Art Birthday

Punch-art Gloria wishes you a big birthday hip-hippo-ray!....from a sunny beach on the faraway shores of Madagascar...

Just a little bit of weekend punch-art fun I indulged in this morning, with many thanks to Mercedes for providing the awesome hippo punch-art inspiration.

I couldn't work out what punch Mercedes used for her hippo legs, so I improvised with the Modern Label punch (very good investment that one!!). I also recently acquired an Ornament punch and can't wait to have a go at the multitude punch-art options that one has opened up for me.

Also, after spying a simply gorgeous project on Kim Score's beautiful blog I have just this morning popped in a wee order with Peachy Keen Stamps for some of their ever-so-cute face stamps. Can't wait until they get here. Gonna have some serious fun with those....I'll be sure and pop the final product up here in due course!

That's it from me today. I was up late last night at dinner and a movie. I saw 'This Means War' with Reece Witherspoon and co. It had me in stitches. Well worth a trip to the movies for the laughs!

PS. Has anyone else noticed the new, improved password doovers appearing when you try and leave a comment on some Blogger blogs? It says 'Please prove you're not a robot'.....which I obviously must be, because I have been having the devil of a time decoding what some of the stoopid things say. I just tried four times on one blog, finally got it right, but I'll be leaving a lot less comments in future methinks...they're just too hard for me!

Gooey Green Cake

After making our little Thumper a punch art turtle card for his first birthday, I thought a fun matchy, matchy turtle cake might be in order too. So I scoured my trusty 'Woman's Weekly Kids' Party Cakes' book and found Tommy Turtle...who I thought fit the bill perfectly!

I had two little helpers lending me a hand (or four) at various stages throughout the making of this cake...it always makes the whole process that much more fun!

And the final verdict....?

Thumper likey! This photo of our little man enjoying his birthday cake has been edited in Photoshop using the Velvet Peach Action created by Rita of The Coffeeshop Blog. Thanks for another great Photoshop Action Rita!

ETA: I just wanted to show you another action that Rita has recently added to her blog...the Instant ColorBar Action! It is so much fun to play with, and what a great way to pick colour combos for cardmaking, scrapping etc!

Nightie, night now!

One of the cards that John West rejected...

I can't put my finger on what it is about this card that I don't like...but the fact remains, I don't like it! It was one of those cards that sat around on my desk, half finished, for about four weeks. I literally had to blow the dust off it when I finally decided to finish it up (because it was getting in my way). I ended up making Master Five another card...so this one is still sitting around mocking me. In an effort to move it along, I've photographed it, and now it can go in my card box...hooray!

List of Ingredients:
Cardstock: Early Expresso, Whisper White, Pacific Point, Baja Breeze, Yoyo Yellow (textured) and Only Orange (all SU)
Ink: Basic Brown Classic Ink (SU)
Stamps:
Punches: 1 1/4" Square Punch (sails and fish tails), Small Oval Punch (fish), Two-step Owl Punch (seagulls and sail number), Scallop Edge Punch (foamy waves) and Jewellery Tag
Accessories: Early Expresso Taffeta Ribbon (SU), White Gel Pen (misc), Cloud 1 & 2 Die Collection (PTI), Limitless Layers: 1 3/4" Circle Collection (PTI), Creative Memories Brown Sticky Lettering, Scallops and Circles Impressions Plate (Taylored Expressions), Vintage Cream Pure Wool Felt (PTI), Orange and Yellow Felt (Felt on the Fly - Etsy), Scrapbbok Adhesives MyStik (Scrapbook Boutique), Mini Glue Dots (SU) and Dimensionals (SU).

Thanks to everyone that replied to my last post, where I asked for thoughts on what crafting things to take on our trip. I am sorely tempted by the 'take no papercraft stuff at all' argument, simply because it is by far the easiest option...but I just know I will get to some point where I will NEED a hit (even if it is only an itsy bitsy one)...

Found out yesterday that I need to get more skin cancer surgically removed from my face before we go. Can't say I danced out of the skin specialist's office after that announcement, and have been feeling pretty flat since. I know its minor stuff in the scheme of things, but I already look like I have a bit of street fighting or bar room brawling in my history, with several scars on my chin, forehead and corner of my eye from previous Basal Cell Carcinoma (BCC) removals, and I am a bit over it! But enough of the whinging... ;-).

Thanks for visiting,

(Blogged to: Decode - Paramore, Addicted to Love - Robert Palmer and Rock That Body - Black Eyed Peas).

Hush my darling, Don't fear My Darling, The Lion Sleeps Tonight...

 Or in the case of a slumber party for five seven year old girls...the lion doesn't sleep tonight!

I thought I'd show you the birthday card that I made for Miss 7. It was inspired by this gorgeous card that we received from my friend Di...but I've kept with the lion theme (as requested by Miss 7 herself)...

List of Ingredients:

Cardstock: Basic Black (Textured), Only Orange, Yoyo Yellow (Textured) and Whisper White (all SU)
Ink: Tuxedo Black Memento (Tsukineko)
Stamps: Birthday Bash Sentiments (PTI)
Accessories: Kiwi Kiss Patterns DSP (SU), Paper Piercer (misc), White Gel Pen (misc), Orange Zest Satin ribbon (PTI), Yellow Twisted Paper Cord (Annabelle Stamps), Simply Chartreuse Pure Wool Felt (PTI), Die-namics Fresh Cut Grass Die (My Favorite Things), Scallop Circle Punch (SU), Two-step Owl Punch (SU), Flower Trio Punch (SU), Dimensionals (SU), Mini Glue Dots (SU) and Tombow Mono Adhesive (Penwa).

If I were making this card again, I would run the Whisper White layer through my Cuttlebug with a simple, non-fussy design (can't think what right now though...). This lion reminds me a bit of another lion I made some time back (here...the lion fancy has been going on for some time now).

The slumber party was a success...I think. To the best of my knowledge no one spent the night crying into their sleeping bag...I checked about six times ;-), and eventually they all got some sleep (not a lot...but some). I wish I could say the same for me! Thank goodness I had the Sunday to recover before it was back to the weekly chores.

The girls seemed to enjoy the activities we had planned for them. These included alphabet beading, pillowcase decorating, and pom pom critters...

The pom pom critters were my favourites. Apart from the pretty coloured wool (from Spotlight), I got to play with my newly acquired (also from Spotlight) glue gun. ME LIKEY!

Gotta run! Thanks for visiting.

Blogged to: Touch - Noiseworks, Fall of Rome - James Reyne and Hungry Town - Big Pig).

I feel like a mile-high, pastrami on rye, on the fly from the deli in the sky!

Got your attention? Let me start by saying this blog post has nothing to do with pastrami on rye. If, however, you feel like checking out some delicious, beautifully decorated chocolate mud cake...this is the post for you...just read on!

Remember at the end of my last post, the tragic tale of cake woe and retail disappointment, I mentioned that I had a GOOD cake story to relate too...well, this is it.

Behold a rooley, trooley, super dooper skamooley...beautiful cake! One that was custom made, looked fabulous, tasted even more fabulouser (while I'm making up words here I may as well go all out), was made on time, was worth every penny and one whose creator (Sarah of Little Miss Cupcake) was a real pleasure to deal with...

 

Sarah, we loved the cake! The kids were rapt by the design (Miss 7 especially!!), and we really enjoyed eating it too. It was super moist and delicious, and I may even have gone back for seconds (this is just between you, me and the gate-post....and is significant because I don't usually like chocolate mud cake at all).

I can highly recommend Sarah's amazing creations, and we'll be ordering again if she can fit us in! If you live in the ACT, check out Little Miss Cupcake...even if you don't live here (your loss...hehehe) check out the photo gallery of kids cakes here (there is one of Sponge Bob Squarepants in there...oh no AVERT YOUR EYES! ;-).

My apologies for the over abundance of pics above (couldn't help myself) and the bodgy lighting too. It was indoors on a partially overcast day...and there was me not wanting to traipse outside with the cake in hand and have it pooped on by a passing Magpie, made off with by a rabid dog or have some other highly unlikely disaster befall it...that'd be WAY more than I could have handled at that point!

Just quickly...I also made some party bags...

List of Ingredients:

Cardstock: Riding Hood Red (Textured), Marigold Morning and Whisper White (all SU)
Ink: Tuxedo Black Memento (Tsukineko)
Stamps: Wild About You (SU)
Accessories: Aluminium Metal Edge Tags (SU), 1 1/4" Circle Punch (SU), Limitless Layers 1 3/4" Circle Collection Dies (PTI), Washi Tape (Pretty Tape on Etsy), Dimensionals (SU) and Tombow Mono Adhesive (Penwa).

Sigh...more beautiful Washi Tapes here! Check them out on Etsy...from Pretty Tape, Sugar B. Supplies, UGUiSU and Washimatta.

PS. Thanks for all the comments on my last post. I needed a few sympathetic ears. You guys are awesome!