Spring Colours

A card today I can post now that I now it's been received.

The intricate die cut is Pretty Quick 'Stained Glass Rose Window'.  I was lucky enough to win the die recently on Susan's blog.   I used Sue Wilson 'Double Pierced Squares and Circle' dies for matting and layering.  The sunflower was made with punches and the leaves are punched too.  I love using sunflowers on my cards, because is reminds me of the all the 4 and 5 year old Reception children I taught over the 13 years I was Sunflower Class teacher. 

I am joining in the following challenges:
As You Like It Challenge ~ Favourite Flower & WHY?
Shopping Our Stash #347 - No Ink
Tic Tac Toe Challenge #41 ~ (Circle, Flower, Die cut)

Two cards post

Two cards in this post so I can join in with a few challenges which are finishing soon.

The  Less is More Challenge this fortnight is One Layer with the theme of 'Stencils'.  I used a Memory Box 'Raindrops' stencil and placed it over the top of the card blank.  I die cut an oval in a piece of scrap card and laid this over the stencil so I could ink through the oval aperture.  Using a dauber and a 'Denim' Adirondack ink pad, I inked all raindrops.  Both the stamps are from the Inkylicious 'Dance in the Rain' set of stamps and were stamped with Versafine 'Onyx Black', using my stamp platform.

I am joining in the following challenges with this card:

Less is More Challenge #367 ~ OLC Stencils

A CAS Thank You card, using a couple of dies and a flower punch.  The dies are Memory Box 'Grand Thank You' and Poppystamps 'Trudeau Border'.  I added Nuvo Crystal drops along the border die cut and in the centre of the flower.

I am joining in the following challenges with this card:
Memory Box Challenge #35 ~ Color Challenge Green
Poppystamps Challenge #42 ~ Clean and Simple
Simply Create Too Challenge #136 ~ Use Green 

Southern Girls Challenge ~ Die cuts

Butterfly Challenge

The Butterfly Challenge this fortnight is 'Spin The Butterfly Wheel with the Letter L ~ Lavender, Lemon, Light Blue, Lace, Layers, Letters + a butterfly'.   Although the challenge is to use a butterfly and one or more of the colours or themes, this time I wanted to make a card with all seven elements.

I decided to use several of my neglected punches.  Anyone remember those days before dies were available and shapes were made with punches?  How things have moved on!   I made the panel by using an Xcut butterfly punch three times along a strip of white card.  I backed the panel with a strip of lavender card. I made the flowers with a flower and a circle punch, using all three colours of the challenge.  The two paper lace strips were punched with a Martha Stewart border punch.  The letters are Memory Box 'Upper Case Alphabet Soup' die cuts.  There are lots of layers on my card, so all seven elements included. Phew!

I am joining in the following challenges:

Butterfly Challenge #97 ~ Spin The Butterfly Wheel with the Letter L

The Crafter's Cafe Challenge #192 ~ Handmade Flowers

That's Crafty Spring into Action Challenge

Bizzy Bec's March Challenge ~ Anything Goes

Christmas Elf and Reindeer

The Rudolph Days March Challenge started yesterday and closes at the end of the month. For my card, I used a stamp I was lucky enough to win over in the Playground in the Holiday Giveaway.

The stamp is Stamping Bella 'Elf with a Reindeer on Top'.  It has a matching die, but for this card I just used the stamp.  The image was stamped with Memento 'Tuxedo Black' and coloured with Promarkers, before die cutting with a semi-circle cross stitched die I bought on eBay.  I added a strip of Dovecraft ribbon and three red Nuvo Crystal Drops.  All the white card is the same colour IRL, but the camera is playing tricks again and the piece with the image on looks more of a creamy colour.

I am joining in the following challenges:

March Rudolph Days Challenge

Penny Black and More! March challenge - Feature a Creature (reindeer)

HLS March Christmas Challenge ~ Option of add a reindeer

HLS March Anything Goes with Dies Challenge

Black and White

I had a lovely day out yesterday with my crafty friend, Ruth, at the Malvern craft show.  We managed to fit in a couple of workshop while we were there.  I can't believe I resisted buying any new dies and stamps, despite there being lots to tempt me, but I still managed to come home with quite a few bits and pieces.

A thank you card today for friends who invited us round for dinner recently.  A fairly quick card to make, using up some of my black peel offs.  Am I the only one who still has a huge box full??

The embossing was done with a Creative Expressions 'Dotty Daisy' e/f.  The embossed panel is plain white, although the shadows cast makes some of the dots look grey.  The image and sentiment are both peeloffs, matted and layered using stitched rectangle dies.

I am joining in the following challenges:

Allsorts Challenge - Week 460 ~ Black and White only

Card Mania Challenge # 102 Embossing

Die Cut Diva's Challenge ~ Monochrome

Monochrome Magic Challenge #9 ~ Monochrome

Southern Girls Challenge ~ Diecuts

Cards in Envy No Patterned Paper Card Challenge

Gatefold Owl Card

As my friend is a 'Tawny Owl' in her Brownie pack, I usually make her a card with an owl on.   This time I decided to make an owl shaped card.  

I bought the Sizzix 'Owl Fold A Long' set of dies quite a long time ago in a sale, but never used them.  One of those offers that was too good to resist!  So I decided it was time I got the dies out of the packet.  I used the same patterned paper for the outside decoration and also the inside flaps.  

I kept the inside owl shape white so I could write the birthday greeting here. 

I am joining in the following challenges:
Double D Challenge ~ Just "Wing" It
HLS March Anything Goes with Dies Challenge
Sisterhood of Crafters Challenge ~ Birds
Craftyhazelnut's Patterned Paper March Challenge
Southern Girls Challenge ~ Diecuts

Twofer - Blossoms

Darnell's Twofer Challenge #3 ends in a few days, so I've got my skates on to make two different cards, for two different occasions, using the same die for each card, before the closing date.

The die I used on both cards is Cheery Lynn 'Sunflower'.  My first card is a CAS card in one of my favourite colour combinations of red, white and black.  The leaf is an Xcut punched shape, the punch embosses as well as punches.

I am joining the following challenges with this card:
Cards in Envy No Patterned Paper Card Challenge

 My second card is a Spring Fold card, using the same die. The embossing folder is Cuttebug 'Swiss Dots'.  I made two smaller sunflowers with punches to finish off my card.

This is a side view of the card.

I've made a template to show how I made the card base.  Start with a 10" x 5" piece of card.  Cut off the corners marked in green, after marking at 2½" from the two right-hand side corners along the long sides and the short side.  The broken lines are the score lines.

I am joining in the following challenges with this card:
HLS March Anything Goes with Dies Challenge
Fab 'n' Challenge #385 - Anything but Square
Die Cuttin' Divas Challenge  #361 ~ Flowers
Bizzy Bec's March Challenge 

Just for You

After spending a lovely weekend in Plymouth with a group of friends, my hubby and I had planned to have a few days in North Devon in our caravan.....which is where I should be now.  However,  the weather had other ideas, as the 'Beast from the East' made another appearance and brought with it lots of snow, particularly in North Devon.  As the caravan site was cut off by the snow, we came straight home instead - quite a scary journey, as the snow was falling quite heavily in places.  At least I can try and catch up on my blog visiting now that I'm home.  

A card to share today I made for a card swap, which I can post now that I know it's been received.

The card base is die cut from a set of  Presscut dies, 'Scalloped Semi Circle'.  I used Spellbinders circles and scallop circle dies for the middle, using white and teal card, the teal card is pearlised.  The butterfly is a Spellbinders die which cuts out and embosses two butterflies for layering and I attached the butterfly with foam pads.  It's an old die which sadly has been discontinued.  The letters are Memory Box 'Upper Case Alphabet Soup' die cuts.  I used snippets for everything apart from the card base and patterned card, so I'll be sharing my card in The Playground.

I am joining in the following challenges:

Pixie's Snippets Playground - Challenge #322 ~ Use snippets

Butterfly Challenge #97 ~ Spin The Butterfly Wheel with the Letter L (Butterfly, Letters and Layers - no colours)
Pile It On Challenge #140 - Circles and/or Squares
HLS March Anything Goes with Dies Challenge
Craftyhazelnut's Patterned Paper March 2018 Challenge
Monochrome Magic Challenge #9 ~ Monochrome


A couple of photos to share from our visit to Buckland Abbey, near Plymouth.

An amazing 'Cosmic Egg'!  

A Rembrant self portrait worth over £34 million, just hanging on the wall!

The Last Unicorn

Welcome to my new follower, Rachelle, the owner of the Scrapping 4 Fun Challenge blog. 

  The Allsorts challenge this week is 'Fairy Tales and Nursery Rhymes'.  My card is based on the story of The Last Unicorn.

I covered a 7 x 5 card  blank with pink card.  I embossed a piece of the same pink card with a Cuttlebug 'Christmas Stars' embossing folder.  The frame was made with two square wonky stitches dies.  The unicorn is a die I bought on eBay using a snippet of silver, holographic card.  As usual, not much luck in photographing the holographic card! LOL!  I raised the framed image up on foam tape.  I used a Martha Stewart double-edged 'Doily Lace Trim' punch for the panel across the middle and added tiny, punched, holographic stars.

I am joining in the following challenges:

Allsorts Challenge - Week 458 ~ Fairy Tales and Nursery Rhymes

Pixie's Snippets Playground - Challenge #321 ~ Use Snippets

Get Creative Challenge Challenge #67~ Fantasy, Mythological 

Use Your Stuff Challenge #303 ~ Die cuts

CAS Christmas

There is a new challenge starting this month, the CAS Christmas Challenge with the theme of 'Holly'.  An easy theme, or so I thought, until I could only find one holly stamp.  I think it may have come as a magazine freebie several years ago, but despite trying different stamp pad and a stamp platform, I couldn't get it to stamp cleanly.  Although I really wanted to join in, I thought I might have to skip the first challenge.  Then I came across a little holly die as part of a set.

This card is 6 x 4.  The holly die is from the Sweet Dixie 'Christmas Small Snowman' set of dies.  I die cut it in two shades of green, as the die leaves an aperture in the middle of each leaf.  It was really quick to pop in the darker shade into the middle of each aperture.  I added some red Nuvo Crystal drops for the berries.  The embossing folder is an old Cuttlebug folder which I think has been discontinued.  I stamped the Papermania sentiment with Versafine 'Satin Red'  and raised it up on foam pads.   The stamp set is called 'Deck the Halls'.  Then I remembered a holly punch I have, so made a second card with a similar design.  

This card is 7 x 5, so I had to use a larger embossing folder.  The e/f is Creative Expression 'Sparkle Square'.  The punch is a pre-loved Dovecraft one and Nuvo Crystal Drops added for the berries. The  sentiment stamp is from the same Papermania set as the last card, again stamped with Versafine 'Satin Red' and raised up on foam pads.

I am joining in the following challenges:
CAS Christmas March Challenge ~ Holly

60th Birthday Card

Welcome to my two new followers, Lorre-Anne and Kerri-Ann.  

My QCME magazine subscription came to an end recently and the magazine is no longer being produced.  Rather than spend the money on a subscription with another craft magazine this year, as I seem get most of my inspiration from many fabulous crafters' blogs or online craft groups, I decided to treat myself to the Classic Adorned Hexagon dies.  A crafty friend gave me the Double Stitched Hexagon dies for Christmas and the decorative hexagons to go with them had been sat on my wish list for a couple of months.  (I'm sure I'll still buy the odd magazine or two. 😉 )   I've used my new dies on this 60th birthday card I made for a friend.   

The dies are all Creative Expression dies by Sue Wilson:

Classic Adorned Hexagon

Double Stitched Hexagon

Faux Quilled Blooms

Windswept Grasses

Dandelion Clocks (for the centres of the flowers)

The teal, pearlised card and the dotty card are both from Anna Marie Designs.

Many thanks to Loll for designing a beautiful watermark for me. 

I am joining in the following challenges:

Allsorts Challenge - Week 457 ~ Ladies Only

Crafty Cardmakers Challenge #206 ~ Floral Delight 

My Time to Craft Challenge #365 ~ Monochromatic

Simon Says  Wednesday Challenge ~ Girl Power

Bizzy Bec's March Challenge ~ Anything Goes

Blog Makeover

I am absolutely thrilled with my blog makeover, kindly designed by Loll.  Thank you so much Loll, I LOVE the new design, complete with a beautiful signature.

I thought it appropriate that the first card on my 'new look' blog included sunflowers, so this is the card I made today.

The image is a Hooks, Lines & Inkers stamp. It's got a date on it, '93, so it's pretty old!   It was a pre-loved one I bought a many years ago.  The image was stamped with Memento 'Tuxedo Black' and coloured with Promarkers and a green ultra fine Sharpie.  The corner die cut is a Memory Box 'Distressed Windham Collage' die.

I am joining in the following challenges:

Butterfly  Challenge #96 ~ Spin The Butterfly Wheel with the Letter N (Naples Yellow, Napier Green, Not Square and there IS a tiny red butterfly in the image)

Memory Box Challenge #35 ~ Color Challenge - Green

Country View March Challenge ~ Postcards (6x4 project)

Cards in Envy ~ Green Things Card Challenge

It's A Boy

Today is the start of the Crafty Calendar Challenge for March and this is my DT card.  The theme is month is 'Add a tag or...make one' and we are sponsored by Oddball Art.  

I used the beautiful 'Kawaii Valentine Giraffe' digistamp from our sponsor, which I coloured with Promarkers.  I used Poppystamps 'Stitched Mainstreet Tag' dies for layering the image and added a yellow star brad.  The pattern paper is from a 'Nanas Nursery Baby Boy' paper pad.  I added a few punched hearts to finish off my card. 

There is a generous prize of  two images for the randomly drawn winner.

Click HERE to see lots of inspiration from the DT.  Looking forward to seeing all your beautiful creations - challenge ends on 28th March.

I am joining in the following challenges:

Crafty Catz Challenge #406 - ATG with optional twist...Make a Baby card

Dies R Us  Challenge #92 ~ Use Pastel Colors

Cards in Envy ~ Give It Some Heart!

Addicted to Stamps Challenge # 161 ~ Have a Heart

Addicted to Stamps and More! Challenge #281 - Anything Goes

Craftyhazelnut's Patterned Paper March 2018 challenge

Hiking

In my last post I posted a card I made for a friend's special birthday.  After failing to find a suitable card in the shops, his wife asked me to make a card for her husband's birthday, for her to give him, with the theme of walking/rambling.  

Looking through all my stamps and dies, I didn't have anything suitable. However, I managed to find suitable image on the CraftsUprint website called 'Old Rambler Dude'.  As I had very little time to make the card, I used the pre-coloured version.  I wanted to make the card more personal, so I printed a map of Fuerteventura, where my friend and her husband were staying for his birthday, with the resort highlighted.  After layering the images on green and blue  card, I added two green Card Candi as a finishing touch.

I am joining in the following challenges:

Alphabet Challenge ~ Y - is Your Choice

Scrapping4Fun Challenge #110 ~ Masculine, Boys

Simon Says Wednesday Challenge ~ Anything Goes

Addicted to Stamps and More! Challenge #281 ~ Anything Goes