Rambler

A birthday card today for a friend who enjoys rambling.  His 'shortcuts' usually turn out to be a longer way round!

The image is from craftsUprint 'Old Rambler Dude'.  I added some texture for the background using an old Cuttlebug 'Forest Branches' embossing folder.  I used a punch for the leaves. 

I am joining the following challenges:

Shopping Our Stash #414 - The Great Outdoors

Crafty Cardmakers #251 ~ Embossing

The Male Room Challenge #130 - Use Embossing

Recycling

I'm sure I'm not the only one who saves shop bought Christmas cards received, with the intention of recycling  them and turning them into handcrafted cards...... only to still have most of them unused in December!  This year I'm determined to use more of them.  With the February Rudolph Days challenge beginning today and finishing on Saturday, it was the perfect time to recycle some shop bought cards and join in the challenge.

 The first one is a card front trimmed to size, matted on dark green and attached to a card blank.  I added a few tiny white pearls where the larger berries were in the design.

For my second card, I used a Memory Box 'Stitched Rectangle Layers' die to die cut the image.  This is when I had a Senior Moment..... as the card was going through my Big Shot I realised, too late, that it was going to flatten the red pom-pom nose!  So I prised off the flatten nose and replaced it with one punched from red glitter card.  I used the red glitter card for a mat and with a left over piece die cut a scalloped strip using a die from the Memory Box 'Stitched Country Border' set.  The non-shed glitter card is from Hobbycraft and is a beautiful shade of red.

For my last card,  I made a green frame using a die from the MFT 'Stitched Circle Scallop Frames' set to frame the image I'd already cut into a circle.  The background is embossed with a Couture Creations 'Great Zane' embossing folder.  The framed image is raised up on foam pads to add some dimension.

I am joining in the following challenges with this card:

Rudolph Days February Challenge

Jingle Belles Challenge ~ Better Off Red

Winter Wonderland Challenge ~ Anything Christmas Goes

Simply Create Too Challenge #157 ~ Use Red + 1 Other Color (Green)

So that's three more Christmas cards finished to add to the box for next Christmas.

Fruit

The theme for the Twofer Challenge this month is 'Fruit'.  Two different designs, for two different occasions, using the same stamp, die or stencil.  I didn't think I would be able to join in this month, but found a stamp with two small olives on a stick in the Stampin' Up 'Sip Sip Hooray' set.  It's quite tiny and it took a bit of thinking how I could use it other than in a cocktail glass.  However, when I looked again at the olives, they reminded me of a pair of quirky looking eyes.

Here is a close up of the olives/quirky looking eyes.

I am joining in the Twofer Challenge with this pair of cards.

My first card is a CAS congratulations card.  The cocktail glass stamp is from the same set of stamps as the olives, stamped with Memento 'London Fog'.  After stamping the olives, I made a mask to cover them before adding the 'liquid' to the glass with a pink metallic ink pad.  I then coloured the olives with a green Promarker.  The grey sentiment is a stamp from the SU 'Happiness Surrounds' set.

I am joining in the following challenges with this card:

Allsorts Challenge - Week 560 ~ Make it Girly

Crafty Catz challenge #494 - Anything Goes with optional twist of Food (Olives)

I don't think there can be a child in the UK who doesn't know Eric Carle's story, 'The Very Hungry Caterpillar'.    Although it was written over 50 years ago, it was always a favourite with the four and five year olds I used to teach.    The 'quirky olive eyes' were perfect for him. I stamped them on green card and fussy them individually and matted them on scraps of yellow card.  The head was an oval die cut and I used a punch for the oval body parts, in two shades of green.  The feet, nose and antennae were all cut by hand.   I added hairs on the back of the caterpillar with green and red fineliner pens.   The sentiment is a stamp from the SU 'Confetti Celebration' set of stamps, coloured with Promarkers.  Three Card Candi finished off my card.   All the card I used was snippets, apart from the red card base, so I'll be sharing my card over in the Playground. 

I am joining in the following challenges with this card. 

Pixie's Snippets Playground - Challenge #372 ~ Use Snippets

Simon Says Wednesday Challenge ~ Add a Sentiment

Addicted to stamps and More! Challenge #377 - Make your Mark

Fab 'n' Funky Challenge #469 ~ For a Child

Pop-Up Easel Card

I recently received a card with this fold, which I think is known as a Pop-Up Easel Card.  I've never tried this style of fold before, but thought I'd give it a try for a card I needed to make for card swap and this is what I came up with.

I started with a piece of cardstock 21cm x 21cm.  I used a Couture Creations 'Fireflies' embossing folder for the white panels.  The circles are all cut with Memory Box ' Stitched Circle Layers' dies and the flowers were made with punches.

The computer generated sentiment stands up as a little easel and the small sunflower is layered on a circle die cut and raised up on foam pads.  

The base of the card can be twisted round to reveal a plain white panel for the message.  The card folds flat for posting.

I am joining in the following challenges:

Allsorts Challenge - Week 559 ~ Dies and/or Punches

Path of Positivity Challenge #77

Use Your Stuff Challenge #392 ~ Circles

Cuttlebug Mania Challenge ~ Flower Power

As promised in a previous post, here are the cards I made at a Stampin' Up retreat the weekend before last.  I put the finishing touches to a few of the cards at home.

Home of the Beatles!

More about our visit to the home of the Beatles at the end of this post.

A birthday card today for a friend who likes anything elephant related.

I used a Memory Box ' Grand Happy Birthday' die with yellow card and backed the bottom part with grey card before attaching to the white card blank.  The elephant is a die from the Sweet Dixie 'Toy Giraffe & Elephant' set.  I backed the elephant with yellow card, which shows through the flower pattern and added a tiny clear gem to the centre of the flower.  The three flowers were made with punches and I finished off my card with a grey strip near the bottom of the card. 

I am joining in the following challenges: 

Allsorts Challenge Week 559 ~ Dies and/or Punches
Pixie's Snippets Playground - Challenge #371 ~ All snippets, except for the base card
Crafty Catz Challenge #493 ~ Anything Goes with optional twist of Critters
Little Red Wagon Challenge #536 ~ Wild One
Use Your Stuff Challenge #391 ~ Critters 
HLS February Anything Goes with Dies Challenge
Double Trouble Paper Crafting Challenge #49 ~ Again and Again - three punched flowers

My hubby and I spent four days this week in Liverpool, the home of the Beatles.  I must be 20 years since we last visited and it still is the friendliest city I've ever visited.

View from the top of the tower including the Catholic cathedral, known locally as 'Paddy's Wigwam'.

A brilliant exhibition with everything you need to know about the Beatles.

My hubby turning the Fab Four into the Fab Five!

The gates of Strawberry Fields.

A stop at Penny Lane.

On the way home from Liverpool, we took a 'slight' detour to call in Lavinia Stamps shop in Ruthin, North Wales.

 What a gem of a place to visit!

I bought a few crafty goodies, including a fan brush.  I remember seeing the brush used on a Lavinia video...... I just need to find the video again to remind myself what it was used for. LOL!

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Anniversary Card

An CAS anniversary card today I made for friends of ours.  

I used a Creative Expressions 'Swirling Heart' embossing folder and added tiny white pearls to the die cut heart.

I am joining in the following challenges:

Allsorts Challenge Week 558 ~ Add a Heart

Crafty Friends Challenge #128 ~ Love/Romance

HLS February Anything Goes with Dies Challenge

Tales From the Craft Room Challenge #2 ~ Love Is In The Air

Double 'D' Challenge ~ Hearts

Simon Says Wednesday Challenge ~ With Love

I returned home tonight after a lovely weekend at a Stampin' Up retreat.  I'll post a photo later of all the cards I made.  My friend and I intended coming home overnight on Saturday, but as the windiest day and night of the year was forecast, we decided to book a room and stay at the hotel.  I took these photos in the hotel grounds - so it looks like we made a wise decision!

Flower of Scotland

I know my card has arrived at its destination in Scotland,  so I can share it now on my blog. 

As the thistle is the flower of Scotland,  I knew this was the image I wanted to use.  The thistle is a Woodware stamp and to make it two tone, I stamped it with Memento 'Tuxedo Black' after rubbing the ink off the flower ends and colouring with a purple Marvy pen instead.  The image was coloured with Promarkers.   I added a gold Card Candi to pick out the gold in the Stampin' Up plaid paper.  The sentiment is a Stamps by Chloe stamp and the matted sentiment is raised up on foam pads.

I am joining in the following challenges:

Stamping Sensations February Challenge ~ Feminine

Craftyhazelnut's Patterned Paper February Challenge

Ladies' Night

Two VERY quick CAS cards to share today, which I made at the weekend.  My hubby and I went to an annual Ladies' Night dinner/dance on Saturday.  I woke up in the morning and realised I'd totally forgotten to make cards for the two Chairmen who would be giving a speech to wish them a great evening.  I needed one masculine and one feminine card and I decided to make them very similar.

The die I used is a Tonic die I bought a few years ago in sale, from memory it only cost me 50p!  I attached the die cut to the embossed background.  Five tiny clear gems added a little bling.

I am joining in the following challenges with this card:

Moving Along With The Times Challenge Challenge #115 ~ Sentiment/quote as focus

Watercooler Wesdnesday Challenge #256 ~ All About Occasions

I made the masculine card in black and white and used a star embossing folder for the background.   I added three black gems in the corner.

I am joining in the following challenges with this card:

Crafty Cardmakers Challenge #249 ~ Black and White

Addicted to Stamps and More Challenge #374 ~ CAS

Little Red Wagon Challenge # 534 ~ Aw, Man!

Ike's World Challenge #128 ~ M is for Male/AG

A Place to Start February Challenge ~ Masculine

WINNER of my New Year Giveaway

Thank you to everyone who joined in my New Year Giveaway.  All those who left me a comment to say you weren't sure if you had left me enough comments in 2019 - all your names went in the cup as I know you've visited and left me lovely comments during the year.  

So onto the winner of the beautiful Poppystamps 'Stitched Wreath ' die.  The names were put into a large cup and out came..........

MAC MABLE of The Sweetest of Peas!  Congratulations Mac!  Please leave me a comment with your email address and I'll contact you to arrange sending off your prize. (All comments are moderated, so I won't make your comment live.)  I'm not sure where in the world you are, but hopefully your prize won't take long to reach you.

Before I finish my post, here are a few cards I made last Friday evening at a Stampin' Up class.  I know I'm really lucky to live near other crafters, so I have lots of opportunities to craft with friends. 

Professor Wiggingson

The February Crafty Calendar Challenge begins today with the theme 'Use Die Cuts/Punches'. Our generous sponsors this month are Dr Digi's House of Stamps.

Our sponsor kindly supplied the DT with digi images to use and I chose 'Professor Wiggingson'.  I coloured the image with Promarkers and used Memory Box 'Stitched Rectangle Layers' dies for matting and layering the image.  The image is raised up on foam tape to add some dimension.  The yellow panel is embossed with a Cuttlebug 'Number Collage' e/f.  It's difficult to see in the photo, but the background was cut from a sheet of old graph paper, to keep the school theme.  

Here is a close up of the background, which is much clearer IRL.

The Crafty Calendar Challenge closes on the 28th February and the DT have made lots of cards for inspiration.  The randomly chosen winner will win digi images from Dr Digi's House of Stamps and the DT will chose a Top 3.

I am joining in the following challenges:

Little Red Wagon Challenge # 534 ~ Aw, Man!

Ike's World Challenge #128 - M is for Male/AG