Easter Blooms

I have two cards to show you today, this is made using an Imagination collage stamp that I got at the NEC, I've coloured it with watercolours and decoupaged the crocus so that they stand out.  There's a swirly dry embossed background and the label came from a Nestie set.
My card is for:
Catch the Bug - Easter/Spring
Craft your Days Away - Easter
Di's Digi Designs - embossing
Sweet Stampin' - Spring/Easter
Stamp, Scrap & Doodle - spring
Alphabet Challenge - D is for dry embossing
Just Add Ink - Easter
4 Crafty Chicks - Easter
Aud Sentiments - Happy Easter
Totally Papercrafts - Easter
One Stop Craft Challenge - Easter

Waltzing Mouse Sketch Challenge

It's a beautiful day here, after a long walk and some gardening I'm back with another clean & simple card, this time for the Waltzing Mouse Sketch Challenge.  I've used the chrysanthemum stamps, inked up with an array of small ink pads, adding a tiny bit of clear Stickles here and there.  The squares were cut out with Nesties and popped up on Pinflair glue.  The card is textured linen, I've added one of the new sentiments from WM as well as the Frame-It stamp.  I really like the look of this, hope you do too!
My card is also for:
Allsorts - say it with flowers
Totally Papercrafts - my favourite things (I love purple and I'm also loving my WM stamps at present)
Charisma Cardz - ribbon, ribbon, ribbon

Red roses in winter

I've another card from that gorgeous Engraved Flowers set to share with you today.  I've kept to a restricted palette of red, white and black.  The flowers are stamped at random with Versamark and red embossed for the background.  I've added the sentiment from the same set, a bit of matting and layering, some lace, spotty flower and stripy ribbon.  This was a very quick card, I do like this flower as a background.  Keep warm everyone, it's bitterly cold here today:(.
My card is for:
Simon Says - spots and/or stripes
Incy Wincy - bold and bright
One Stop Crafts - on the spot and ribbon
Sentimental Sundays - ribbon
Totally Papercrafts - spots and stripes

Don't be gnomeless!

Today I have a monochrome card to show you, using the Gnome Sweet Gnome set from Stamp Addicts, I've decided tto leave the sentiment off for now, really he could be used for all kinds of things.  As usual, he's coloured with Copics, edged with Distress Inks.  The DP is, I think, My Mind's Eye for the large square and some Stampin' Up in front of it.  I've stitched round all the DP and added a MS punched fence in kraft paper, with some twine around it.  And that's it, this little chap doesn't need too many embellies...

My card is for:
Sketch'n'Stash - sketch (new stamps, old DP)
Ooh la la - stitching
Totally Papercrafts - stitch it
Anything Goes - stitch it
Bearly Mine - one for the boys - Get Well Soon Donna!
Craft Your Passion - anything goes + brown
House of Gilli - monochromatic
Incy Wincy - stitching

Less is More - anything goes - take three

Good morning and on with the quest for 1,000 entries at Less is More!  This is nearly a one layer card:).  I wasn't happy with the colour of my moon so I stamped it again onto a scrap of glossy card had been brayered for another card.   Memory Box stamp is called Autumn Tree Landscape but here I've used pale bluey-green watercolour marker and some Prisma Glitter to make a Christmas card, the sentiment is a magazine freebie and I also glittered the S and G of it.
My card is for the following challenges:
Less is More - anything c&s goes
Totally Papercrafts - clean & simple
Wee Memories - no patterned paper
The Squirrel and the Fox - anything goes
Bows & Berries - glitter

A bird with Bling!

If ever a bird has the bling factor it surely must be the peacock, when I coloured in this image from Tiffany Doodles I added some Stickles, then some blue mirri board that I've had for ever, then a bit more...  I was a bit intimidated at the thought of colouring this, but I brought up a photo of a peacock on my computer and foud that, with the shading already there it needed minimal colouring.  

I've based the card on Jessica's sketch at There She Goes, the border is an EK Success punch, there's a matching ribbon round it which shows up much better in real life, the sentiment is computer generated.  Background paper from Artylicious and the embossed card is sanded and distressed Coredinations.

My card is for the following challenges:

There She Goes - sketch

Totally Papercrafts - bling it up

4 Crafty Chicks - get your bling on

Aspirational new home card

 I love my Design Team work, don't get me wrong.  After a few early forays I know to restrict it to using artists whose work I love, in fact even calling it "work" is wrong, it's playing really isn't it!  But just occasionally something else reaches out and grabs me, in this case it is stamps by Lindsay Mason who I met at Craft Barn's Extravaganza at the start of the month.  I loved the way Lindsay created and this is really an attempt to copy her style.  If you check out her blog you'll see it's a bit of a pale imitation, she's seriously talented and was also so friendly and generous with her tips and ideas.

I've used Distress Inks on glossy card for the background.  I smudged my sentiment slightly so stamped again on the lower part of the card and matted it over the smudge.  Just the edge towers are glued down on the big castle so it has lots of dimension but it can still be squished down to post.  Background stripe is My Minds Eye, DIY style brads are Joanna Sheen and I've used Swiss Dots embossing on the frame.  The screw brads are because everyone ends up doing some work to their new home, even if it's a castle:).
 Enjoy your day.

My card is for the following challenges:
Midnight Madness - sketch
The Paper Shelter - anything goes
Totally Papercrafts - spots and stripes
Sew Many Cards - dry embossing
Sweet Stampin' - something old (swiss dot folder), something new - Lindsay stamps
Secret Crafter - embossing

Wishing you sunshine all year through

Today we have sunshine and showers and this is a bright happy card to celebrate the sunshine, though it has been so dry that we really do need the rain too!  I've used a Joanna Sheen House Mouse Decoupage, I have the stamp for this image too, it's beautiful isn't it.  I've added a LOTV sentiment, some twine and some gems,  The DP is My Mind's Eye and I've cuttlebugged some snowflakes onto the yellow paper.  Yes I do mean snowflakes, in the yellow they look like stylised sunflowers to me.
My card is for the following challenges:
House Mouse & Friends Monday - May flowers
Moving Along With the Times - sketch
My Mum's Craft Shop - anything but square
Creative Craft World - anything but square
Delicious Doodles - let the sun shine
Fairy Knoll - flowers
Totally Papercrafts - don't be square
Paper Sundaes - pop it up

Some Neglected Stash for a Sunday

 Happy Mothering Sunday to all Mums everywhere.  I'm having a quiet day without either son as one is still at University and the other has just started a part-time job and is at work.  Before he went he presented me with a large bottle of "Mother's Ruin" - gin - in this case a blackcurrant gin that is my favourite ever tipple:).

I've finished up a card for the Sketch 'n' Stash Challenge, really the only new stash is the baker's twine, but this is a "neglected" card even though it's not stash as such...  I stamped and watercoloured a seaside scene with my Hobby Arts Scene-It stamps but it just didn't look quite right and it's sat on my desk for months.  Yesterday I trimmed out large swathes of scene by using a Nestie circle on it and I'm much happier with it now and it has made it into a card.

The strip is My Mind's Eye 29th Avenue DP, sentiment is Elusive Images embossed in red, baker's twine is from Quixotic Paperie and I dry embossed a swirly white panel.

My card is for the following challenges:
Sketch'n'Stash - sketch
Tellen's Place - embossing
Totally Papercrafts - one for the boys
Stamping Vacation - pick 3 from a list (I chose circle, dry embossing, sentiment)
Sentimental Sundays - let's get wet
Cards for Men - embossing

Top Tip Tuesday Challenge - Show Me Those Buttons

Good Morning and welcome to this week's Top Tip Tuesday Challenge!  This week Samantha has a fabulous tutorial on altered buttons for you, be sure to visit the blog and check it out.  I learnt lots from it and can't wait to try out some of the ideas.  You can alter buttons for this week's challenge or you can simply use buttons, as I've done here.  I used a Pink Petticoat digi and sentiment, combined with Cosmo Cricket Material Girl DP.  The tape measure is part of a DP striped with multiple, coloured tape measures, how cool is that?  I've followed the sketch at Sketch Saturday but also made my card into an easel card, which is so easy to do with buttons to prop it up.  A couple more buttons threaded with baker's twine are at the foot of the card too.  Only drawback to all the buttons, which are "real" buttons rather than tiny craft ones, is that I had to pay extra postage to send this yesterday:).

My card is also for the following challenges:
Sketch Saturday - sketch
Kaboodle Doodle - yellow, blue, pink & green (all in DP!) 
My Partner in Crafting Crime - 3 or more buttons
Squigglefly - pushing my buttons
Crafty Pad - use a digi
Creative Inspirations -easel cards
Totally Papercrafts - add buttons
Digital Tuesday - all buttoned up

Fred's Flowers meet Friday Sketchers

With spring well and truly on the way I've been using lots of flowery images, including this gorgeous, precoloured peony from Fred She Said, you can buy the image in an assortment of colours here or you can buy it to colour.  The precoloured made a really fun and fast card, I just used lots of Glossy Accents for the jar.
The DP is Basic Grey Curio, which is rather darker and more grungy than I usually pick, thought it worked well with the image though.  I distress inked the DP edges with Brushed Corduroy and also sponged the dry embossed circle.  I added a bit of lace and a few pearls and that's it.
My card is for the following challenges:
Friday Sketchers -sketch
Do You Stack Up - layers
Southern Girls - use flowers
Simon Says Stamp - anything goes
A Spoonful of Sugar - shabby, vintage (DPs, distressing)

Sentimental Sundays - sentiment, pearls and lace

Top Tip Tuesday Challenge - Use a sentiment

Good morning and welcome to this week's Top Tip Tuesday Challenge!  Over on the main blog we have a fab tutorial on making a WordArt book from the talented Carol and the challenge is to use a sentiment on your project, or of course play along using Carol's tutorial.
I've made an easel card with no less than 4 sentiments on it!  Yes, I'm still playing with the Fred She Said empty pocket shruggers set, you can buy them here.  This set just makes me smile every time I reach for it.  I've coloured with Copics and used Distress Inks for the background, the DP is Basic Grey Sugar Rush, ribbon is from stash and I used Card Candy on a ribbon raised on foam tape to prop up my easel. Oh, there are red and orange Stickles on the exploding cake!  A birthday just isn't a birthday without an exploding cake...

I'm entering my card for the following challenges:
Pile it on - anything goes
Stamp, Scrap & Doodle - anything goes
Totally Papercrafts - birthday
Fairy Fun Fridays - Happy Birthday
Sew Many Challenges - birthday
Craft Your Days Away - anything goes
Basic Grey - dots and spots
Stamp Insanity - let it all hang out!
Delightful Challenges - easel card
Paperplay Challenges - cutie patootie

Dream Big!

I've no newly completed cards to blog today, it has been such a busy week!  I made this card at a workshop with Sarah Anderson, at The Stamp Attic, in the Autumn but never got round to blogging it.  That warm gold is great to look at today, it's grey and rainy/sleeting, ugh.
The main image is Stampington, the stitching stamp and sentiment are Wendy Vecchi.   The background was made by spraying Distress Ink sprays and I've paper pieced the wings and the bodice, painting them with acrylic paint.  There's some random machine stitching and that's about it.  If you ever get the chance to take a class with Sarah, be sure to jump at it, it was a really fun day and we all created lots and learnt lots.
I'm entering my card for the following challenges:
Totally Papercrafts - paper piecing
Gingerloft Challenge - distressing
Charisma Cardz - New Year celebrations - what a great New Year sentiment!

Christmas Blues

 

I'm continuing to play with my Phindy's Place images and this is yet another favourite of mine, it's called Holiday Wreath and I think it's just stunning.  Yet again I've used the sketch from Simon Says, though I've changed it around a little this time; the lovely Lols is trying to get their number of entries this week to over 500!  So I'm doing my bit :).
I've coloured my digi with Copics and decoupaged it on top of a piece of cardstock that I've decorated with spray inks and white embossed swirls stamped on it.  Makes a very chilly looking background!  I was sticking to self-made papers, so I embossed white pearlescent cardstock with my Scor-Pal for the background and stuck a seed bead on each junction.  Snowflake is made with a Woodware punch, sentiment is Craftwork cards inside a Nestie circle.
I'm entering the following challenges:
Simon Says Challenge - sketch
Saturday Challenge - Christmas
Winter Wonderland - penguins and polar bears
Totally Papercrafts - Xmas punches (snowflake)
Cute Card Thursday - the blues
Digital Tuesday - animals at Christmas
Sew Many Cards - snowflakes

Sweet Stampin' - create your own background paper

Double embossed Christmas

 

We've had a hectic weekend, two days at the races and a house full of visitors, so no crafting has been done at all since Thursday!  Here's a fairly quick card I've made for Christmas that I finished last week.  It uses a Papermania stamp that I bought at the NEC which is much in demand.  It's HUGE!  I used Distress Inks to make a background then heat embossed it with purple hologram powder called WOW that was another NEC purchase.  It's matted onto black then added to a dry embossed background with some ribbon and a lattice punch strip adding.

My card is for the following challenges:

Truly Scrumptious - sketch

Totally Papercrafts - black & purple

Paper Sundaes - pick your toppings (embossing, punches, ribbon)

No Time to Stamp - non-traditional Christmas colours

Dutch Dare - clean & simple

Owl always love you...

  This week at Top Tip Tuesday we are having two week open challenge with lots of great prizes on offer from our sponsors.  Be sure to check it out and enter! 

Our fabulous sponsors for this challenge are:

Daisys Digi Doodles

Joanna Sheen 

Squiggle Stamps

Sunshine & Giggles 

I've made an Autumn card using an adorable owl image from our sponsors Squigglestamps.  I printed my owls 3 times and used silicon glue to give them lots of dimension.  They are coloured with Copics and Glossy Accents for their eyes and edged with Distress Inks.  The DP is Basic Grey Indian Summer.

I'm entering the following challenges:
Card Patterns Sketch - sketch
Pink Elephant - brown and orange
The Shabby Tearoom - inspirational photo - you have to check out this photo - yum yum yum!
Basic Grey - Autumn/harvest
Crazy4Challenges - Autumn/fall
Totally Papercrafts - Autumn

Autumn is on the way

Good grief it was cold this morning!  It may still be August according to the calender but it's get the woolies out time here.  This is another card from my class with Jenny Mayes, this was our first, "warm-up" card.  which again uses her SceneIt stamps.  This is very simple, though we used 6 different tiny stamps to build the scene would you believe!  Watercoloured with Tombow pens and mounted onto embossed card. It's a classic summer's end scene, hope you like it:).

This card is for the following challenges:
Totally Papercrafts  - clean & simple
Pile it On - farewell to Summer
Papertake Weekly - just the one (one piece of cardstock added to image)
Cards for Men - long Summer Days

I do like to be beside the seaside

I started this card with the intention of entering Twisted Thursday last week when the theme was summer accessories, shamefully I didn't get it finished in time.  When I saw that this week's Twist was to use Red in my card I was really pleased that I had coloured the beach umbrella red and I finished up my card:).

I kept it pretty clean and simple, basing it on this week's Inspirational Card Sketches Challenge.  Image is coloured with Copics, striped card was blog candy, sorry don't know the make.  The sentiments are Joanna Sheen House Mouse.  The cocktail has some Glossy Accents giving the glass a shine, doesn't show up too well in the photo.

This card is for the following challenges:

S2G Twisted Thursday - Use some red

Inspirational Card Sketches - sketch

Totally Papercrafts - By the Sea

One Stop Card Craft - Summer Fun

Crafty Cardmakers - It's our Birthday

Down by the Jetty

This week at Corrosive Challenges we are following Janet's sketch and I've used it to make a card that's been on my mind for a few days, while I'm trying to increase the number of cards suitable for men in my stash.  This week's Simon Says Challenge is Sing It Baby.  After watching Oil City Confidential about Dr Feelgood and their Canvey Island beginnings  I have had All Through the City on the brain:

"I've been searching all through the city
See you in the morning down by the jetty"

Now admittedly the jetties there are no doubt for huge oil tankers and my jetty is rather a romanticised version but it is a jetty:).

My card is heavily inspired by an article by Karen Kerr in Cardmaking & Papercraft, who demonstrates using the Hobby Art stamps to build a scene.  The sentiment is from Craftwork Cards and the watery DP came from Stamp Attic.

My card also fits Totally Papercraft's By the Sea Challenge and  Secret Crafter's Saturday Challenge of It's a Man's World

Bellariffic Friday meets Totally Papercrafts Recipe

I'm not too sure how to enter Emily's Bellariffic Friday, the sketch was published last week.  Anyhow, here's a card for it it it's not too late:).   I used the Charlotte Ketto stamp that I bought at Craft Barn, coloured with Copics.  The blue DP is a K&K from a big box and the strips are a My Minds Eye magazine freebie.  I added some little gems and a ribbon for Charlotte's hair, which makes the card fit Totally Papercraft's Recipe Challenge of 1 image, 2 DPs, 1 ribbon, 3 embellishments.  Isn't she gorgeous?