Spring Crocus

Here's my weekend's work for the Less is More challenge. This week the theme is SPRING.

What comes to mind when you think of Spring?   For me, it's the beautiful swathes of crocuses that appear on the fields where I walk Suzie. Catch them on a good year and they are stunning.

I cannot draw to save my life, so my daughter, Annabel, sketched me this crocus image and I paid her with a cooked dinner!!! I wanted to make it look like a postage stamp, so I played around with it in on my comp.

I'm not happy with the 'Spring' sentiment, I thought a  small text would look ok, but I couldn't get the card to go through the printer.

I used yellow chalk around the image, coloured it (not very well!) with Copics and added Sakura clear star pen to the 'crocus' text - IRL this glitters. The wavy lines were in a stamp set from Royal Brush ( It's a Boy).

Then I mounted it, with sticky pads, onto the stamp shape, which was cut on my slice machine (basics card).

The pearls are coloured deep purple with a Copic pen.

I would also like to enter my card for the Allsorts Challenge - Inspired by Nature

Here's some pics of the crocuses I took last year. 

Christmas Crackers

Well, one day we were knee deep in snow and the next, it was completely gone!! Like magic :-)) Don't worry if you're missing it though - we could have it all over again at the end of the week!!!
Here's a couple of Christmas Crackers to show you - I made them using Karita's tutorial in the Christmas Magnolia Ink magazine. I have put an envelope with money inside mine, but they are a really good size for a small present - (very) roughly the main body is 7" x 2.5".

Try as I might, I can't get the ends of my top cracker to stay pushed out, but it still looks ok!

Challenges

Stamp Something - Digi Day.     I have used Cuddly Buddly Digi Images.

Cuddly Buddly Crafts - The Icing's on the Card.    I added Star Dust Stickles glitter to both images and the edges of the leaves, punched the flowers from glitter card and sprinkled Diamond Dust on the snowflake.

CES Challenges - Anything BUT a Christmas Card - I know it 'Christmassy' but it's Not a card!!   ;-))

Allsorts - Last Minute Christmas

Just Cute Bears & Friends - Anything BUT a Card

 

Digital Images - Cuddly Buddly - these were freebies available here  but check out their shop for some more adorable images and tons of crafting goodies.      DP - My Mind's Eye, Signature Christmas.

Snow Day

 Hello everyone... I do have a quick card to show you, but first the 'Snow Bulletin' - are you having fun in the snow yet?? I won't be venturing out anywhere today - the roads are pretty much blocked and it's starting to come down again. I feel a film day coming on!

Here's a photo taken from my back door this morning - since then we have had another few inches of snow - 

and Suzie is beginning to get lost in it.

Here's my CAS card - another quick make to add to the pile.  I would like to enter it for the following challenges..

Papertake - Sketch. (I did rotate the centre elements, so that my image would fit).

Allsorts - Monochrome

Digital Tuesday - Animals at Christmas Time.

Top Tip Tuesday - Anything Goes

Digital Image - freebie from Ladybug and Friends        DP Dovecraft Christmas Fancy
Pearls and ribbon from my stash.    Snowflake covered with Diamond Dust.

Candlelight Friends

I love easel cards, but I have yet to master taking a decent photo of one, especially on an overcast day like today - so, apologies for this rubbish picture!

 I really enjoyed making this card - I think it has every kind of bling on there..lol** The image is coloured with Copics and I decoupaged the holly leaves and added some gems for the berries. I LOVE the way the 'candle wax' turned out - after colouring it, I added a thick layer of Glossy Accents.

 Challenges - 

Allsorts - A great sketch to follow this week.

Stamp Something - Digi Day - you can use any digi image you like.

Secret Crafter - Sparkle and Shine

Die Cut Dreams - Snowflakes

The image is a cute Digi stamp from Cuddly Buddly. I don't know why I haven't come across these before, besides having a fabulous range of craft goodies, they also have digi stamps and printable decoupage sets. There's even a great freebie section for you to give their stamps a try.

DP is a mixture of Memory Box Mistletoe and Spiceberry.

The crystal gems I used were clear, I just used a Copic to colour them red.

The snowflakes are an XCut punch, covered with Diamond Dust.

Behind the image is a narrow, glittered and embossed strip. I bought this thinking that it was stick on ribbon, but it turned out to be a transfer - it's from Daisy and Dandelion.

Sentiment is from Craftwork Cards.

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A work of heart !

Afternoon everyone... poor Suzie is having a stressful day today. The gardeners are here, trying to cut back the hedges from hell and she is not happy that they are strolling about her garden. She thinks she is a Rottweiler in a Westie body!!

I don't know what came over me with this card - I think I had a 'girly' moment !!

I've never really got the hang of distressing, but I am pleased with the way this turned out. I used Tim Holtz distress ink  on  the edges of my DP, around the stamp and on the little tags. I like the colour around Tilda, instead of it being just flat white, so I think I will be adding some inks to my list for Santa!
I cut Tilda out, coloured her with Copics and stickles glitter and paper-pieced her clothes.

Challenges...
Friday Sketchers - Aud's fabulous sketch (definitely a keeper this one!)
Allsorts - Bingo - A fun challenge from Mummylade, where you choose a row on the Bingo card.
I chose Lace, Flowers ( on my DP ) and Tags, but I admit, I was tempted to go for a Full House...lol**

Stamp - Magnolia, Tilda with Heart Package.     DP - Papermania, Regency.
Happy Birthday Stamp - Penny Black, Critter Party.       Stickles, Frosted Lace.
Tim Holtz Distress Ink, Tattered Rose.   Heart Buttons, Lace, Mini Tags, Card Candy from my stash.

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Away in a Manger

Hello everyone, it's a damp and dreary day here today, so I am practicing my 'photography with flash' skills !!
Here's another card to add to the Christmas pile..
This is the first outing for my LOTV stamp - isn't it just adorable - I really tried hard to do it justice with my Copics.
I have also discovered my new favourite thing... a little Sakura Stardust pen,
that I got from Bunny Zoe's Crafts. It so easy to get a nice, thin line of pretty glitter - check out Mary and Joseph's headbands.

 I would like to enter my card for the following challenges...
Papertake Weekly - 'Favourite challenge from the last 3 years' - I just love Dawny's sketches, they are great to follow and really make the stamp the star of the show, so I chose one from June (No. 43), that I didn't get to use first time around. Papertake also have a fabulous Birthday Blog Hop, so pop on over there and join in the fun.
Winter Wonderland - 'Jesus is the Reason for the Season'. Warning: Do NOT look at their Christmas Countdown Clock... you will panic... :-)
Allsorts - 'Inspiration from a Song Title' -   Away in a Manger

Stamp - LOTV Mary and Joseph,  coloured with Copics and  Sakura Stardust Pen
Design Paper - GCD Ella Blue.
Snowflakes - Cut with Slice machine ( Fa La La Card ) and covered with Diamond Dust.
Blooms - XCut punch, edged with Sakura Stardust Pen, with pearl centres.

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Every leaf speaks bliss to me, fluttering from the Autumn tree. ( Emily Bronte)

Well, Autumn seems to have well and truly arrived. My tumble dryer is working overtime and it won't be long before we have to fire up the central heating!!   I love it!!    It's my favourite time of year, and if I'm very lucky we will have a nice thunderstorm before too long!

Here's my latest card, using some lovely Autumn colours.

I followed Dawny's great challenge sketch over at Just Magnolia - which sent me scrabbling around in the kitchen cupboards looking for something to draw around for the large circle. I eventually found a glass sundae dish that was the perfect size!!
The tag was cut with my slice machine and I added some DP to the centre. Then I cut out my Tilda, coloured her with copics and stuck her on with foam pads. I used a punch for the small flowers, nipped the petals together to give them a little shape and added an adhesive pearl to the centre. I used card candy on the tag and the corners and finished off with some stickles glitter and the birthday sentiment.

I would also like to enter this card for Craft Yours Days Away - 'Girly 'n' Glitter'. ( Is it girly enough?? )
                                                  and  Allsorts - 'Colours of Autumn'

Stamp - Magnolia 'Flower Power Tilda'
Design Paper - Memory Box 'Blackbird'
Tag cut with Slice Machine - Basic Elements
Blooms - XCut punch
Card candy and sentiment from Craftwork Cards
'Diamond' Stickles glitter.

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Back to School

I used to love the summer hols when my girls were younger -

having them at home
and making up lots of fun things to do.
I know it's not everyone's idea of bliss though -
so hang on in there if you are starting to feel frazzled -
only another 4 weeks to go... lol**

The thing I like about challenges, is that they make you try something different
and push you out of your comfort zone.

This card certainly did that, I'm not really sure about using the bright colours,

but that was the challenge over at Allsorts

'Red, Blue & Yellow'

I also used the great sketch by Emma at
Sketch Saturday
and followed Stampin' for the Weekend's

'Back to School' challenge.

I used this cute Digital Delights stamp of the school bus.

I wanted to make the characters look like they were sat in the bus,
so I cut out an extra bus layer and used foam pads to 3D it.

Stamp - Digital Delights School Bus & Sentiment, coloured with Copics.

Design Paper - Papermania Basics - Vibrant.

Buttons from my stash.

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A Piece Of Cake!

Afternoon everyone... hope you are enjoying the weekend.
Just how cute is this stamp? It's the first time I have used it and and I think it's going to go in the 'favourites' box.
I used a nice simple layout for my card, because I really wanted the image to stand out.
I paper-pieced the little hedgies, and then again their feet and stuck them down with foam pads, for that 3D look.
It wasn't easy to cut out their feet, but it was well worth it, for the effect.

I am entering my card for this week's Allsorts Challenge, where the theme is 'Birthdays'.
Allsorts is one year old - congrats ladies - so as well as the challenge they have a fabulous blog hop, with lots of goodies to be won.
So grab yourself a coffee, pull up a chair and head on over there.

Recipe

• Stamp - Penny Black, Party Pooped, coloured with Copics and some stickles glitter on the candles.
• DP - My Mind's Eye, Pretty Please.
• Card Candy, and sentiment from Craftwork Cards
• Nesties Ribbon Tag
• Brads and ribbon from my stash
  
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Animal Thank Yous

Sorry about the Bank Holiday weather guys. I think the rain is my fault - I bought a new BBQ last week!!!
Never mind.. we have had a film day and I have even managed to get some crafting done.
When my daughter saw the little Anya Thankyous ( previous post ) she wanted a set, but she asked for animals. She looked through my stamps and chose this cute little giraffe and sweet elephant.
I made the cards with my largest, scalloped, rectangle nestie and made a little envelope decorated with a strip of design paper.
The box for the cards is a little pizza box. You can see Bev's great tutorial for one here
I did have to alter the dimensions for mine, as I used rectangle cards, as opposed to Bev's squares. It's easy to change, but if it helps, my measurements were the same as for my Anya box.

I am going to enter this little set into 2 challenges..
1. Allsorts Challenge, where the theme is 'Animals' and
2. Sketch Saturday, where I have rotated Maya's sketch and used it on the lid of my Pizza Box.

Recipe :
Elephant Stamp - from the Simon Says Stamp, Elephant Love Set.
Giraffe Stamp - from Woodware, Clear Magic, Jungle Pals set.
coloured with Copics.
Design Paper DCWV, Nana'a Nursey, Baby Boy
Peel off 'Thank you'

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Monochrome Boy's Card and Wallet

I thought this week's great sketch over at
Allsorts Challenge
was just perfect for a boy's card.
And, as it's my nephew's birthday soon,
I made a matching wallet for his birthday money.
You can't go wrong with cold, hard cash for teenagers can you?
:-)
There's a DT call at the allsorts blog this week too -
so get your name down if you're interested.
I used my favourite papers of the moment,
the Papermania Capsule Collection - this one is 'Mono'.

I made the wallet by simply folding a piece of card in half.
On the bottom half I stitched down 2 thin pieces of card,
that will hold the cash in place.

To keep it closed, I cut a narrow strip off the top piece of card,
so that it neatly tucks behind a circle, held in place with a brad.
Recipe -
Stamp - from the WOJ Spring 09 collection,
coloured with Copics.
Design Paper - Papermania capsule collection Mono
Brads and sentiment from my stash.
xxx

Christmas Wilbur

I've had a little panic this morning,
totting up the number of Christmas cards I need.
So, here's another to add to my stash.

I have combined 2 challenges.
The sketch is by Ger, from Sunday Sketch & Stamp
(I just resized the circle,
because this was the largest die I had,
and you do not want to see me cut one out freehand.. lol*)
The theme is 'Furry Friends',
at Allsorts

Recipe:
Digital Stamp - Wilbur, from Pollycraft.
I paper pieced the parcels and coloured Wilbur
with copics.
Design Paper - K & Co Peppermint Twist
Ribbon, pearls, flower and metallic tape from my stash.
xxx

Allsorts Sketch - Edwin

Post number 2 for today -
and it's this card using the sketch at
Allsorts

I can't enter this for the challenge,
as I realised, after I made my card,
that the theme is 'Monochrome Christmas'
Silly me!

I admit too, that I struggled with the sketch.
I wasn't sure what to use for the 5 round embellies.
I persevered though, and came up with the circles
and card candy.
If you want to have a go at the sketch,
and the challenge,
check out the fab work from the DT
for some inspiration.

Recipe:
Magnolia stamp coloured with Copics.
Design Paper - Card Makers Earth Palette.
Card candy from Craftwork Cards.
xxx

I made the top 5

Woohoo!!

I made the top 5 at the Allsorts Challenge.

Click on the banner above to go to their site
and check out the fab DT work
and challenges, that are posted every Saturday.

Party Giraffe

Here's another cute Dustin Pike image,

that I used for this week's Allsorts challenge.

If, like me, your your craft supplies are in old shoe boxes and
random containers, then this is the challenge for you.

You could win a super prize of a krafters purse from

Stamp Addicts

There is a great sketch for you to follow

and lots of fab inspiration from the DT.

Recipe:

Digital Stamp : Dustin Pike, coloured with whispers pens.
Design Paper : DCWV Nana's Nursery Baby Boy
Sentiment and card candy Craftwork Cards
Ribbon from my stash.
xxx

New Challenge Blog

Morning,
just spreading the word that

Kirsten and Emma are setting up a new challenge blog,
and are looking for DT members.
Their challenges will do just what it says on the tin... :-)
'allsorts' of things.

So anyone that enjoys using different techniques
can apply to be on the DT team until midnight May 9th.

I wish them lots of luck with their new blog.
xxx