An Award and an Invitation!

Thank you to Jane and to Karolyn for this fun award. The idea is that I answer lots of fun questions and pass the award on to five other bloggers. I don't like to push people into answering lots of questions so I will simply say that if you are kind enough to read my bletherings on my blog please give yourself this award and pass it on if you choose to :).

You are invited to a Digi Event at SNR Cardiverse tonight. Please come and join in the fun with Shirleys2Girls at their group - click here for the link. It's free to join and you will get the chance to download and use a brilliant new digi designed specially for the event. As a guest on their DT I have been lucky enough to get my hands on the digi ahead of time and I can tell you it's a fun, useful digi that's great to paper piece, colour, pop the layers, anything you please! Hope to see you over at the digi event!

Bronte & Bella get glittered

Last week's challenge over at Mo Manning's blog was a glittery, blingy one. I didn't get time to take part, but this week I've managed to make a card for this week's Mo's Digital Pencil Challenge, which is to follow a sketch by Caryn. I've made up for missing last week with lots of glittery bits on it :). This is also a card for Charisma Cards' Challenge, which is "Merry & Bright" this week, which is even the sentiment on this card. Digital Tuesday's Challenge this week is Holiday Wishes, Papertake Weekly's Challenge is Digi Sparkle and Cute Card Thursday Challenge has has Glitter Me Silly as it's theme. Allsorts Challenge is to Bring Out the Bling and Cupcake Craft Challenge's theme this week is Snow Much Fun. Crafty Creations also has Snow for it's challenge this week. Whew that's eight challenges in one card!

Image coloured with Copics, Stickles and Perfect Pearls. Snow falling was added with Liquid Pearls, which had Glimmer Dust added for even more sparkle. Snowflake was cut with a new Spellbinder set I got at the NEC last week, it has Liquid Pearls and Glamour Dust added. The sentiment is from Craftwork Cards and the ribbon from stash. Papers are Basic Grey. Glue pen and more Glamour Dust are on the snowflakes and around the edges of the image and the sentiment. Bellan and Bronte are certainly glittered and so am I now:)

Twisted Thursday Challenge #33

It's Twisted Thursday Challenge time again! Shirleys2Girls challenge you to follow a sketch - with a twist! Here's what you have to do: Create a card, following this week’s sketch and then “Twist” by using wire somewhere on your project. You are not required to use Shirley’s 2 Girls stamps, but if you've got them, we'd love to see you use them!
Upload your card to your favorite online gallery and/or your blog. If you upload to SCS or PCP, please use the keywords S2GSC31 AND shirleys2girls. Post a direct link to your card using Mr. Linky on the Challenge Blog, here. The deadline for uploading your card is Wednesday, 18 November, 2009 at midnight PDT.The winning card will be chosen by Random.org, the lucky winner will get to choose a stamp from the Shirley’s 2 Girls product list, and their winning card or other project will be showcased on the Shirley's 2 Girls Challenge Blog Please do visit the other Ladies with Attitude, check out their amazing creations and leave them some love:
Karolyn
Debbie
Joy
Justine
Pat
Erin
Now onto my card. I've used the Pilgrims stamp from Shirleys2Girls, available here, I've paper pieced the pumpkin and Stamped two full images: one onto DP and one on white card that I've coloured in with Copics. The DP is Basic Grey Indian Summer, apart from the main background which is from a Bearly Mine CD. I've used a Martha Stewart punch and added a pretty tree charm from Quixotic Paperie (you can see the charm better if you click on the photo to enlarge). The charm is added to the ribbon with a piece of wire but I decided that wasn't much of an adventurous twist and I wrapped pink beading wire round the image. Maybe I should use this more on my cards, I loved beading but I was absolutely useless at it :).

My Grafico Challenge #24 - sketch or sewing

This week's challenge at My Grafico is to either follow Melissa's sketch or to add some stitching, real or faux to your project. The winner of the Challenge this week wins a fun digital set from Cupcake Cuties called Funky Monkey, which the DT have used on all our projects.

I've been contrary and used the tree motif included :). I've paper pieced it with Papermain DP that I bought at the NEC, and coloured the heart with Copics and then Glossy Accents. The background is cut out with Nesties . The rest of the papers are also Papermania, apart from the torn brown wrapping paper that I've added to highlight the rustic look. Card candy is from Craftwork Cards and I've added some zig-zag stitching to my card.

Be sure to check out the rest of the DT, they have made some brilliant cards and don't forget to enter to win this fun set of digis.

Dreaming of a Bling Christmas

Sketch Saturday Challenge has a lovely sketch to follow this week which looks great to use for a special card. I've chosen one of the gorgeous new Christmas release stamps from Shirleys2Girls, available here and set out to use as much as possible of my new stash from the NEC :). This week's Allsorts Challenge is to bring out the bling - I certainly think I've done that :). Crafty Cardmakers are challenging everyone to Stamp Something so I'm also entering that.

The image is coloured with Copics and lots of Stickles and Glossy Accents added. I've cut it out and added it to a circle. The scalloped card, all the papers used (which are all pearlised) and the sentiment are from Craftwork Cards. I used my new Martha Stewart punch for the side borders, snowflakes are punched from plain white card and the ribbon is from stash. It's a bit OTT, but I hope you like it :)

A Simple Thank You Would Do!

This card is made using a new embossing folder that I bought at the NEC on Friday. It's by Quick Kutz and I fell for it in a big way :). I played around with the folder and several different types of cardstock, as well as chalks and Distress Inks, on Saturday night when I was waiting up late to collect my son from a party and in an absolute haze of exhaustion. I looked at what I'd done and didn't like any of it. Happily after a day or so I decided that I did like them after all :).

The card is finished just in time for this week's Simon Says Challenge: Give Thanks and I've based it on a very clean and simple sketch from this week's Card Positioning Systems Challenge.

Hammered card for watercolouring was dry embossed and inked with Pine Needles and Old Paper inks, some green Stickles added to the flowerheads. Sentiment stamp has no brand name on it, sorry. Gems and organza ribbon from stash.

"A simple thank you would do" is one of those phrases you tend to use a lot with teenagers.... LOL!

First Quixotic Card Challenge - Fishing You Many Happy Returns

Quixotic Cards have begun a Challenge blog and their first challenge is Birthdays. You might be unimpressed with this very simple, plain card but it took a lot of doing! This is for a fishing friend of DH, I had to keep telling myself to pare it down and simplify :).

Image and sentiment were both bought last year at Ally Pally, can't remember the name of the stand. They are copper embossed and Distress Ink used on the edges. Image is matted onto copper metallic paper, brown paper and a very tweedy DP from Artylicious. Copper coloured "card candy" from Craftwork Cards added and that's it. Who would have thought it could take so long?

Spread the Love - A Card for Jaimie

There can be few cardmakers who haven't heard the sad story of Jaimie Cates from New Hampshire, who was the victim of a shocking crime when her mother was murdered and she was left for dead. Denise and Erin have set up a Stamp Something for Jaimie blog, asking their cardmaking friends to join together and send a card to Jaimie.

I've used a Lili of the Valley stamp that I think works well for this. I've based my card on the sketch from this week's Cupcake Crafts Challenge and I've followed the recipe from Lili of the Valley's Challenge to use 3 papers, 2 stamps and 1 type of embellishment.

The image is coloured with Copics, edged with Pine Needles Distress ink and some tapestry stamps of leaves. The second stamp is a sentiment from Papermania, the 3 papers are also Papermaina. Flowers are Prima.

Winter Willow

Today I got the chance to play with some of my new acquisitions from the NEC, as well as my Whiff of Joy Winter Stamp Kit.

I began with the Whiff of Joy Challenge's very pretty sketch by Jane.
The colourscheme came from this week's Copic Colour Challenge, which uses rose red, spectrum green and robin's egg blue and
Saturday Spotlight's Challenge is "repeatedly useful" - using an image repeatedly, the snowflake stamps were ideal for this.

I stamped Willow and masked her so that she could sit on the sledge and I coloured her with Copics. The snowflakes were stamped in Broken China Distress Ink. Papers are Basic Grey Eskimo Kisses. The ribbon is organza coloured with spectrum green Copic (came out darker than I expected) and the sentiment is from Craftwork Cards, again coloured with Copic. I punched a couple of snowflakes from white card and added some Stickles to them and to the stamped snowflakes.

No cards to blog, but much craft shopping

Today I went to the Hobbycraft Show at the NEC, having been on a "stamp diet" (no stamps bought) for a month in preparation. I had a great time and spent far too much LOL! For those of you who are going tomorrow, have a great time, I have left you somethings to buy. There are Martha Stewart punches 2 for £23 and Nestabilities 2 for £30, masses of bargains, an exquisite range of papers from Magnolia as well an a very expensive magzine from them full of eye candy, Basic Grey Cupcake papers for £1.95 a pack for the 6" size... wonderful!