Less is More - don't scrap it

Here's a second card for this week's Less is More Challenge, which is to use scraps for your card.  This one really hasn't made any impression on the scrap heaps in my craft room, the scraps are long thin pieces of card trimmed from cards.  The main image is stamped onto a card that was a one-layer card that went wrong.  Then I've added long skinny bits of card scraps to frame the image and embossed a line onto the card either side.  The stamp is from Little Claire, it is a birthday present from my dear blogging and real-life friend Val.  To keep the LIM look I haven't coloured all the image, just enough to give it a springtime look.
My card is also for:
Simon Says - anything goes
Stamp'n'Doodle - embossing
Crafty Bloggers Network - springtime
Squigglefly - spring is in the air

Waltzing Mouse Sketch Challenge

Good morning again, here's a second posting for today.  I had fun making this card for this week's Waltzing Mouse Challenge, using the Chrysanthemum stamp and sentiments from Say it out Loud.  I stamped the flower using purple chalk ink and clear heat embossed it, doing the same for the sentiment, then I popped it up on Pinflair glue, doing the same for the sentiment.  The DP is Prima, there's lots of stitching on the card, seam binding, pearls and a new Nestie for the sentiment that I got at Make-It last week.  I added some Distress Ink to the diecuts and to the image.
My card is for:
Waltzing Mouse Sketch Challenge - sketch
Dilly Beans - in stitches
Top Tip Tuesday - stitching
Corrosive Challenge - another dimension
The Ribbon Girl - pink, brown & cream

Online Dating...

Just a quick posting with another card from the Joanna Sheen Viva la Divas CD-Rom.  This follows the layout at Sketch Saturday, DP is Memory Box and K&K I think.
Oh, in case you are wondering, the only online dating going on here is in the title of this blog post lol!

Ageist Card

 

This morning's card is for my Mum to send to her friend Nora for her 90th birthday.  The picture is from a Joanna Sheen CDRom called Vivas La Divas. I often see wonderful cards made from CDRoms by talented crafters and buy the CD full of enthusiasm.  However they tend to languish on the shelf, unused, as I do enjoy getting inky.  This one is brilliant though and I love the way you can add your own text to the retro-style pictures.

The card is very simple, following this week's sketch at Dutch Dare.  I used some Artylicious printed DP (another CDRom!), card candy and a ribbon that was on some chocolates I got for my birthday.  Hope my card has made you smile on a Monday :).

My card is for:

Dutch Dare - sketch

CD Sunday - recycling (ribbon)

Crafty Ann - bold and bright

It's a dog's life

Mum kindly treated me to some downloads from Printable Heaven of Cecil Aldin watercolours of dogs, the download also included some images for colouring.  My terrier is ginger all over, but she lies just like this, it is an adorable image.  I used Stampin' Up paper and ribbon, a couple of Memory Box die corners and added stamped paw prints to some card candy.
My card is for:
Sweet Sketch Wednesday - sketch
Simon Says - use 3 different papers
Moving along with the times - lots of layers
Rainbow Lady - dogs
Southern Girls - distressed
Sisterhood of Crafters - getting digi
Truly Scrumptious - all creatures great and small
Can you digi it - puppy love
Allsorts Challenge - anything goes

Less is More - don't scrap it

This week's Less is More challenge is to use up some of your paper scraps.  Great idea, I'm sure all of us have one (or more)  of those shameful avalanches of scraps.  I've picked the top paper from one of the heaps and used it with my new Waltzing Mouse Frame-It set, which has 2 frames, sentiments and a couple of motifs including this leaf.  I used Wow Gold embossing powder for my leaves then added a leaf border along the bottom of the card.  A scrap of gold mirri card is behind the border.
If you are wondering why the border is so close to the wsentiment, it's because the border was punched out to remove a tiny smear of ink :).

Phindy's Place Challenge #94 - Get Well Cards

Sadly we all need Get Well Soon cards from time to time, this week's Phindy's Place Challenge is all about Get Well cards.  I used the Bountiful Bouquet image for my card; this is available as boy, girl or Afro-American boy and girl.  The roses are paper pieced and them given a shine with Glossy Accents.  The rest of the colouring uses Copics.  DP is Basic Grey Out of Print and I've followed the Tuesday Morning Sketch for this week.

My card is for:

Tuesday Morning - sketch 134

Crafts & Me - shades of spring

Ladybug Crafts - spring is in the air

Challenge up your life - get well soon

Crazy4Challenges - dots & stripes

Cutie Pie Challenge - flower power

One Layer Wednesday - two by two plus masking

This week' OneLayerWednesday Challenge is to use 2 colours of ink (Versafine Black, Adirondack Denim), two image stamps (Inkylicious tree and Santa sleigh) as well as masking.  My card is an all-out CASE of a card by Heather Telford, you can see the original here.  I'm not even going to say "inspired by", it is almost the same if not as good lol!
I masked off areas with Post-It notes and then flicked masking fluid across the middle, using an old paint brush.  Then I brayered denim ink and stamped the trees.  The sentiment is also stamped in Denim, it's Stampin' Up.

Neglected (Un-inked) Puppy

I bought this stamp at Newbury Stamp Show last summer and shamefully this is the first time I've used it!  My Mum is staying with me for a while at present and she had many happy years showing, breeding and judging her Golden Retrievers.  I'm planning to do a set of cards using this for her, so you may see a lot more of this stamp over the coming weeks :).
The stamp is coloured with Copics and cut out with Nestie dies.  The sentiment is Craftwork cards, DP and ribbon Stampin' Up and layout Sketch Saturday.
My card is for:
Sketch Saturday - sketch
iCopic Weekly - animals

Crazy4Challenges - spots & stripes
Crafty Emma - spots and dots
Addicted to Stamps - birthday card with dots
Touch Twinn Markers - animals
There she Goes - animals
Sassy Cheryl - no embossing
Die Cutting Divas - favourite pet 
Truly Scrumptious - all creatures great and small
The Paper Shelter - add a sentiment
Paper Pretties - punches or die cuts
Pan Pastels UK - animals

Less is More - diecuts and punches

 I think C&S cards lend themselves to showcasing diecuts and I made a couple more cards for this week's challenge.  I treated myself to a new set of stamps from Waltzing Mouse, 2 frames with words that fit the gap.  The first card uses a Sissix Daisy diecut in spotty and stripy Echo Park DP, I added buttons at the corners. 

Second card is white embossed onto Kraft and uses a Stampin' Up bird on a branch punch, I inked the body of the bird.

My cards are for the following challenges:

Less is More - diecuts and punches

 Cute Card Thursday - flower power (card 1)
Crafty Ann's - bold & bright (card 1)
Papertake Weekly - (card 2)
Kenny K's - emboss it (card 2)
Stampin' Sisters in Christ - feature a flower (card 1)
Crazy4 Challenges - dots and stripes (card 1)

Vintage Seaside

Today's card is another decoupage from Joanna Sheen, this time it's a Faye Whittaker seaside scene.  I enjoy cutting these out if I'm watching tv, but the last stage of making them into a card often gets missed out and the peices sit neglected in their bag:).  I've added some wide ric-rac, My Mind's Eye DP and based my card on this week's Sketch Saturday.  There is no stamping at all on this card, very unusual for me!
My card is for:
Sketch Saturday - sketch
Paper Sundaes - birthday
Incy Wincy - birthday

Going to the Ball

This gorgeous Day for Daisies image is from the CDAC Progressive Freebie challenge, which I bought into last week; I'm going to try to play along each week for a while. All the folds in the dress colour like a dream, I loved making this card.  The DP is Crafty Individuals and I made it very girly with lace, ribbon and pearls, as well as some dry embossing.  The Swiss Dots are at an angle of the card, this was deliberate, honest lol! 
My card is for:
Pixie Cottage - sketch
Totally Papercraft - ribbons & bows
Paper Sundaes - birthday
Incy Wincy - birthday
Creative Inspirations - inspired by polka dots (embossed dots)
Squigglefly - bright & sunny yellow
Truly Madly Crafty - ribbon & bling
Victorine Stamps - lace
Totally Gorjuss - lace
Card Making Mamas - happy birthday

Simon Says - tag it

This is a very quick posting of a tag for the Simon Says Challenge.  I will most likely end up making it into a card but time has got the better of me:).  The stems are an Inkylicious stamp that I've been meaning to use for a while.  It's white embossed with Milled Lavender DI and Eggplant Adirondack ink brushed on, with a moon masked off.  I added some twine where the string went.  It's very simple and unadorned, I like it, what do you think?
My card is also for Lexi's Creations' monochrome challenge. 

Wishes and dreams

This week's House Mouse & Friends Challenge is about making wishes come true.  I think this gorgeous bunny and friend  are wishing for summer, I know I am!  The decoupage is Joanna Sheen, I've added some ribbon, a Lili of the Valley sentiment stamp and DP by Prima.  I'm sorry now that I used the DP, it is so pretty and you can see so little of it!
My card is also for Do You Stack Up's Lots of Layers Challenge,  Stamp Scrap & Doodle's more than 2 layers challenge and Allsorts Challenge Anything Goes.

Waltzing Chrysanthemums

This card uses another of the Waltzing Mouse stamp sets that I was so lucky to win from Claire at WM, alongside the Say It Loud sentiment set.   I used WOW blueberry embossing powder to stamp the words and the flowers, used a MS round the corner punch and added some stitching, some pearls and some lace.  The large flwoers are layered, apart from the middle one.  The larger flower is stamped in Bashful Blue as background onto the blue card.  If you are wondering why the middle flower has only  1 layer  and there is an extra flower top left it's because I noticed that I hadn't lined up my punch correctly and there was a gap in the bubbles!
My card is for:
Waltzing Mouse - sketch
One Stop Card Crafts - create your own background
CRAFT Challenge - no designer papers
Totally Gorjuss - lace
2 Sisters - stitching
Whimsy Stamps - anything but a square card
Creatalicious - all about lace
SJ Papers - flowers
Crafty Purple Frog - flower power
Do You Stack Up - layers
Crafty Catz - favourite things - I am in love with Waltzing Mouse just now, also lace, stitching and embossing are firm favourites!

Less is More - die cuts and punches

I've been into my craft room for the first time in a few weeks and of course the LIM challenge was first choice to create for, this week the challenge is to use dies or punches.  Chrissie's card reminded me I had bought 2 Memory Box ornament dies and not used them.  I punched the base layer from Basic Grey DP and the pattern from yellow cardstock, adding a border of the DP, a Stampin' Up sentiment and some tiny gems.  I drew in the red thread for the ornaments.  In real life, the sentiment, thread and DP all look the same red!

My card is for:

Less is More - diecut or punches

Winter Wonderland - a Christmas card

Christmas Inspirations - anything goes

Inky Impressions - punches or dies

Waltzing Mouse Spring Hop meets OLW

 

This week's One Layer Wednesday Challenge is to use at least three stamps.  Remember tapestry stamps?  I dug out one of the sets of tiny stamps on wooden dowelling, this one is Wisteria.  We have a stunning wisteria on the front of our house that flowers in Spring, so I wanted to show this card as part of Waltzing Mouse's Spring blog party.  The sentiment is from Waltzing Mouse.  There a 4 tapestry stamps and the two words are separate, so that makes six stamps on my one layer card!  The inks were Distress Inks, Dusty Concord, Bundled Sage and some Sepia Versafine.  Here's our Spring Wisteria:

My card is for:

Waltzing Mouse Spring Blog Party

One Layer Wednesday - stamp, stamp, stamp

Cute Card Thursday - flower power

Phindy's Place Challenge #93 - bling it on

Good morning and welcome to this week's Phindy's Place Challenge.  This week we are challenging everyone to make a card or project with lots of bling, something I know lots of us enjoy putting on our cards.  I used the adorable Easter Tree image,addingn lots of Stickles, Perfect Pearls and gems to the Copic coloured image.  I can't remember where the metallic patterned DP is from, it's from the very early days of buying stash:).  The card is finished off with a couple of paper pieced Magnolia Easter egg stamps, some gems and some blingy pink ribbon on the punched border.

My card is also for:

Sketch and Stash Challenge - sketch

Digital Tuesday - use your stash

Truly Madly Crafty - ribbons and bling

One Stitch at a Time - anything goes

Inky Impressions - punches or dies

Crafter's Companion - anything goes

Phindy's Place Challenge #92 - round & round

 Again I am late posting my card for this week's fabulous Phindy's Place Challenge, which is to use circles this week.  The only good thing about being late is that I saw a fab layout at Sketch Saturday that uses lots of circles and was able to use it for my card!

The image is called My Baby and I chose to use it for Easter though it also makes a brilliant new baby card. It's coloured with Copics, Distress Ink and Glossy Accents, the DP is Basic Grey, mostly Marjolaine with a background from the Neutrals.  The lacy ribbon is from Stamp Attic.

My card is for the following challenges:
Sketch Saturday - sketch
Allsorts - free and easy February
Simon Says - love.  I've not entered the multitude of Valentine challenges, but this shows a mother's love, at least I think so!
Papertake Weekly - anything goes
One Stitch at a Time - anything goes
Scrappy Frog - diecuts - lots of diecut circles here!
Drunken Stampers - texture - love this ribbon for texture

Charisma Cardz - things with wings
Moving along with the Times - cute critters

Waltzing Mouse and the Nice List

  

 I'd like to show you a card made with Waltzing Mouse stamps and I'd like to tell you about Claire Brennan who owns it, and her "Nice List". 

Claire asked people to leave a comment on her blog before Christmas for a giveaway of stamps, asking for the person who would be top of your Nice List.  She told us about her lovely neighbour who has done a great job of restoring a kitchen dresser.  I'm having a sad time at the moment and was moved to leave a comment about how helpful my friends have been, especially my friend Morag.  Claire picked her random winner of a prize but also picked my comment for a spot prize.  The twist with this giveaway was that it was for both the commenter and for the Nice Person.  I am so lucky to have beautiful sets of WM stamps and also a sumptuous treat for Morag who is not a stamper.  

So this card is saying a big THANK YOU to friends everywhere, all my kind crafty friends who read my blog and a Thank You to Claire who I have never met but who is clearly a generous and kind person.  Oh and by the way her stamps are pretty amazing too!

Card uses Large Dainty Doilies stamps and sentiment from Say it Loud.  I've based it around this week's Waltzing Mouse sketch challenge.  Lace, gems and white heat embossing.

My card is for:

Waltzing Mouse - sketch

Shopping our Stash - lace

Craft your Passion - no patterned paper

Stampin' for the Weekend - embossing

Allsorts Challenge - free and easy

Drunken Stampers - something new (my gorgeous new stamps!)

Crafty Cardmakers Challenge #61 - monochrome magic

 

Welcome to a new Crafty Cardmaker's Challenge, this is one of those weeks when you almost wish you weren't on the DT when you see the fab sponsorship prizes!  This week we are challenging you to make a monochrome project.  The sponsors are Digi Doodle Store with a $10 gift certificate for their lovely images and IndigoBlu who are offering up an amazing prize of a Flitterglu starter kit AND one of their superb stamps!

I made a blue winter scene using the Here Comes Santa stamp set from IndigoBlu.  I masked off a moon and used a mixture of inks on brushes to make a background, giving it a little spritz of water to blend.   The snowflake border at the top is white heat embossed, it shows up far better in real life.  I then added the sentiment and trees, stamping twice before re-inking for the trees.  I really didn't want to add much more to it, so I matted it a few times, added a ribbon and a few gems on the snowflakes.  Brr...  chilly card for a grey chilly day:).

I'm also entering my card for:

Paper Sundaes - clean & simple (not much white space but I hope it fits their criteria!)

Crazy4Challenges - make a scene

Winter Wonderland - blue & white

Challenge up your Life - monochrome

Craft a Scene - winter scene

Pollycraft - chill out

Craft your Passion - no patterned paper, anything goes

Phindy's Place Challenge #91 - photo inspiration

Sorry to be so late posting this card, I have been unwell.  This week at Phindy's Place Challenge we have a gorgeous photo to inspire you. Do check out the DT's cards, we also have a very talented Guest Designer this week, Katja.  There is a $5 gift certificate to win for Card of the Week as well as for a randomly picked winner.  While you don't have to use one of Phindy's images, there are some fabulous images that we love to see made into cards and don't forget you get two entries into the draw if you use one!

I've side-stepped the valentine potential and used red and green to make a Christmas card with Done Shopping, an image that doesn't have to be for Christmas.    My card uses #8 from the Sketch'n'Stash back catalogue of sketches, with ribbon, card candy, poinsettias and a sentiment added to Echo Park Season's Greetings DP. 
My card is also for:
Sketch'n'Stash - free choice stash
Christmas Inspirations - anything goes
Craft us Crazy  - anything goes
Do you Stack up - anything goes
Pixie Dust Studio - girly girl
Rainbow Lady - wear red