DT Post - Phindy's Place Friday Challenge#27- Fancy Folds

Good Morning!  It's Friday and I'm so happy that it's nearly the weekend.  Friday of course means that it's time for another fun and fabulous Phindy's Place Challenge.  This week we are challenging you to use Fancy Folds on your creation, simple or complex, you choose.  I followed a link to Paola's blog and something called a Double Display card.  It wasn't as hard to make as it looks and it gave me lots of space to use some gorgeous Crafty Individuals DP that I bought recently.  Here it is stretched out so you can see all the folds:
I used Ice Dance, a beautiful Phindy's Place digi for my main image, coloured with copics and Distress Inks, with lots of Stickles added.  The snowflakes, also heavily Stickled, that I've scattered across my card are cut with a punch, the sentiments are from Craftwork Cards and the silver ribbon from stash.  I think I've just invented a new word:  have you Stickled anything lately? :)

My card is also entered for the following challenges:
Charisma Cardz - more than one fold
Simon Says Stamp - 3 embellies (snowflakes, ribbons, sentiments), 2 DPs, 1 image
A Spoonful of Sugar - Winter Wonderland
Gingerloft - glitter or bling
Ooh la la  - nothing floral
Paper Sundaes - change of seasons
Anything Goes - ribbon

DT Post - Phindy's Place Friday Challenge#26 - Something Cute

It's Friday so it's time for a new Phindy's Place Challenge.  This week we have a super-easy challenge for you, to use something cute.  Phindy has plenty of cute designs to choose from, but even if you opt for one of her beautiful landscapes, for instance, just add a cute embellie and you're there!

I've used Big Hill, one of the totally cute and adorable Christmas Cuties and coloured her in pastels to match my Basic Grey Eskimo Kisses DP.  I've based my card on this week's Sketch Saturday Challenge, changing the main image to an octagon for a slightly different look.  Embossing folder is Papermania, as is the sentiment, snowflakes are a small Woodware punch and as I don't have a Winter border punch (yet!) I've turned Martha Stewart grass upside down to make icicles, do you think it works?  I've added Glamour Dust for snow and lots of Stickles to my snowflakes.  Images coloured with Copics and Distress Inks.
My card is also for the following challenges:
Sketch Saturday Challenge - sketch
Cute Card Thursday - make your own embellishments
ASpoonful of Sugar - sparkle and shine
Basic Grey - sparkle
Fabnfunky Challenges - use a digi
Creative Cottage Challenge - bling it on

DT Post - Phindy's Place Friday Challenge#24 - Give Thanks

 

Good Morning and welcome to Friday and to this week's Phindy's Place Challenge.   This week's Challenge is something I love about making my own cards - saying Thank You with a card.  It's easy to email or phone to thank someone after having a meal with them or after they have helped out.  But if you give them a card that is so much more special!  I hope you'll join us and use Phindy's images to  make a card and stock up your Thank You card stash.

I've chosen to make 3 cards which are all fairly quick and easy, I'm struggling a bit to get going on anything crafty, just hope my mojo comes back after I get the next few days out of the way.  The images I've used are called Lil' Garden Gems, you can buy them here.   They are designed to be used small scale and they colour in moments, thanks to the shading that is already there.  In August I took a stall at a local fete and tried selling my cards and it was interesting that every single card made with this set sold out...

First card uses Basic Grey Green at Heart papers, 2 Martha Stewart punches and computer generated sentiment:

 

Second card has  Papermania Henbury Lane DP, a ribbon and a charm of a garden trowel (doesn't show up too well in the photo but that's what it is!).  Sentiment is Elusive Images.

 

Final card uses 2 Nestability shapes, some more masculine tape instead of ribbon and a Personal Impressions sentiment.

 I'm entering my card for the following challenges:

Craftalicious Challenges - Thanks

A Spoonful of Sugar - Anything Goes

Charisma Cardz - Anything Goes

Creative Inspirations - 2 or more stamped images

Who ate all the cookies?

I was so sad not to be part of the Phindy's Place Blog Hop to celebrate the launch of the Christmas Cuties.  I've been trying to give myself a metaphorical kick to get a few nearly finished cards together and here is one of them.  Delivery Man who is one of the Christmas Cuties is totally adorable, isn't he, just look at his cheeky expression.

I've followed Tara's sketch from this weeks Basic Grey Challenge, the DP is Jovial.  I also tried out a background technique from Copic Creations current challenge of shading on and around images.  As a quilter I spend a lot of time teaching people how to stitch random, meandering lines which they often find difficult.  Well now I know how they feel LOL, I find it very hard to make random dotty backgrounds:).  The felt snowflake border came from Stamp Attic last Christmas.  I'm also entering A Spoonful of Sugar's Anything Goes Challenge , the Fussy & Fancy Christmas Colours theme and as my little Cutie has his Santa hat on I'm entering ABC Christmas Challenge of S is for Santa, hope that's ok.

Don't forget, there's still time to enter the Phindy's Place Blog Hop!

Cooking it up With Katie #29 - Autumn embossing and folding

This week's recipe at Cooking it up With Katie is a really fun one:  your ingredients are:  a fancy fold, embossing and Autumn.  I CASED my blogging friend Sylvia and made a zig-zag card which was easier to do than I expected!  Those HobbyArt Scene-It stamps came out again and I created an Autumn scene on watercolour paper,  using a mixture of Aquamarkers and Marvy le Plume pens.  Our trees haven't really changed colour yet but apart from that it is just how Lambourn looks in September.  I used a Crafts Too embossing folder and added a bit of raffia and a tree charm, just for fun.   Here's a side shot so you can see the shape of the card better:).
 I would like to enter my card for the following challenges:
Creative Card Crew Challenge - Autumn or Fall  
A Spoonful of Sugar - Autumn into Fall    
Allsorts Challenge - Colours of Autumn
ABC Challenge - C is for Charms
Incy Wincy Designs - Autumn Colours
Mark's Finest Papers - Autumn Colours
Fairy Fun Fridays - Embossing
Charisma Cardz - Try Something New (zig-zag card)
Digi Doodle Shop - Charm Me
Paper Play Challenges - Autumn

Phindy's Friday Challenge - Going Green

Welcome to Friday and welcome to this week's Phindy's Place Challenge.  This week we are Going Green.  You can interpret this two ways:  you can make a cad using the colour green or you can make your card green by recycling, which is what I've chosen to do.  As long as you use one of Phindy's fabulous images then either or both theme is great!  The gorgeous chocolate swirl paper was part of the wrapping for some chocolates.  I'd hoped to paper piece onto it but it has a shiny finish and that didn't work.  The ribbon was part of the packaging for some card blanks that I bought, it was plain white and I've coloured it with a Copic.  The embossed DP is a small scrap that I found, that's not really recycling though:).

I've used the sketch from Mojo Monday for my card.  The image is, of course, a Phnidy's Place image called Sooo Good, that mouse looks like he's having a good time!  The background is coloured with chalks, image with Copics and Glossy Accents on the cakestand and the berries.
My card is also for the following challenges:
A Spoonful of Sugar - Animal Crackers
Paper Sundaes - Mixed Media

Phindy's Friday Challenge #18 - Pretty in Pink

Good Morning!  It's Friday the 13th but no need to worry about that, just enjoy the fact that it's nearly the weekend and it's also time for a new Phindy's Place Challenge.  This week the challenge is to be Pretty in Pink.  So it's time to make an unashamedly girly card!  Don't forget to use one of Phindy's gorgeous digis and enjoy being pretty in pink:). 

I've used one of those adorable Summer Cuties, this is Bye-bye Butterfly.  There is a beautiful, to scale butterfly included in Phindy's digi, of course.  However my card is so busy that I chose to add a little punched butterfly instead.  I wanted to add lots of flowers and swirls so I made an easel card, basing it on the sketch at Spoonful of Sugar Challenge this week.  Image is coloured with Copics, cut out and popped up onto silicon glue on top of an embossed circle.  The DP is a freebie from My Mind's Eye that came with a magazine.  The left hand flower is a Prima, with a metal spacer from Quixotic Paperie added.  There are metal butterfly charms added to the computer generated sentiment.  All the leaves, swirls, butterflies and flowers are punched and there are Liquid Pearls centres to the flowers.

I am entering my card for the following challenges:

Spoonful of Sugar - sketch

DareU2Digigstamp - blooms and charms

Flutterby Wednesday - open theme with butterfly

Paper Sundaes - metal

Charisma Cardz - easel

Digital Tuesday - butterflies or lace

Sweet Stampin' - pretty in pink

One Stop Craft Challenge - summer fun
The Pink Elephant - summer fun

Crafty Cardmakers - spotlight on punches

Until Further Notice...

I've come across a new-to-me digiblog called Create with TLC,that specialises in sentiments, with many generous freebies. As soon as I saw this sentiment I knew it was right for a card for a friend who has been gravely ill after heart surgery, I just needed to find the right image to go with it. You might think it's not really a "get well" type sentiment and it isn't. Frank's surgery did not go as planned and he has spent many weeks completely out of it, in intensive care and in limbo as it was uncertain whether he would recover at all. Thanks to email, we've had almost daily updates on his situation and at last, things are going the right way. He has moved hospitals to one only an hour from his home and, fingers crossed, he will be making his escape soon:). He is alive, each day another tube or drip or drain is removed and I think he is celebrating being able to continue getting older:).

Card is fairly simple: I used a Rachelle Ann Miller stamp that I bought second hand, shamefully never used (by me) until today. Image coloured with copics, edged with Distress Inks, cut with a Nellie Snellen frame and mounted on a Nestie shape. The paper is Prima, I saw it and fell for it big time, the reverse is yummy too. Twill tape is from stash. The image is straight, it is the pattern on the card that is an irregular pattern:).

I'm entering the Simon Says "You gotta have friends" challenge and the Spoonful of Sugar Animal Crackers challenge with this card.

DT Post - Phindy's Friday Challenge #7- Buttons or Brads

This week's Phindy's Friday Challenge is to use either buttons or brads on your project - or both! That's a really easy challenge that fits a multitude of Phindy's lovely images, so let's see lots of lovely entries to the challenge this week. I used a really sweet, vintage style image called Celebrate with Cake, you can buy it here. I followed the sketch from the Truly Scrumptious Challenge and also the recipe at Dutch Dare which is to use 2 patterned papers, 3 colours and 4 buttons. It's a celebration card so it also fits the theme at A Spoonful of Sugar.

Image is coloured with Copics and edged with Distress Inks. The DP is My Mind's Eye, couldn't resist these new papers when they came in at my local stamp shop. Sentiment is Hero Arts, I made the flower with Bigz dies and I added my buttons around the image.

Twisted Thursday Challenge - Welcome!

Shirleys2Girls have the theme of Home for their Twisted Thursday Challenges for May. This week, the twist is to make a card or project that includes the word WELCOME. It could be a welcome to Spring card, anything you like!

I've used a very sweet cat image, Cat on a Pillow, from the S2G shop for my card. I've based it on Maya's great sketch from Sketch Saturday Challenge. Image is completely paper pieced from Basic Grey Sugar Rush DP, the background has been sponged with Distress Ink. Sentiment is computer generated, flowers are punched from the same DP, gems from Hobby House. My kitty card is also entered for A Spoonful of Sugar's Challenge this week, which is Furry Friends.
Please check out the challenge blog for full details and be sure to visit the other Ladies with Attitude, check out their amazing creations and leave them some love, here's the team: Ann, Anne (me), Carlie, Cat, Deanne, Debbie, Georgia, Gina, Jana, Jane,Jeannie, Jennifer, Judy and Lisa.

ABC Challenge Guest DT - T is for Thank You

This is my second card as Guest Designer for the ABC Challenge, this week they are up to the letter T - is for Thank You. I've combined all sorts of images and sentiments here and had a lot of fun:). I've based my card on the Sketch Saturday Challenge and decided I was in a cupcake frame of mind:). I'm entering my card for A Spoonful of Sugar's Challenge to 3D something, and also to Pile It On, who have the theme "Make It Sweet" - think I've got that one covered:).

You can see the 3D layers here:The main image is It's All Yours, a fun digi from Phindy's Place, I've also used little cupcake stamps from Elusive Images, popped up on silicon glue. "Thanks" is a clear stamp for Dovecraft and "You Make Life Sweet" comes from Impression Obsession, I've combined them on an acrylic block to make my own sentiment. The papers are of course Nook & Pantry from Basic Grey on Bazzill Bling. I've coloured my images with Copics and Glossy Accents, there are 3 layers to my main image and the punch used on the bottom of the image is Martha Stewart.

There isn't a problem that can't be solved...

I've a second card to blog today; I really didn't have time to make another card but I just couldn't resist this image from Isabella's Sketchbook, though I wonder whether the wording is quite right, maybe it should be a little bit of coffee and a lot of chocolate LOL! But really, isn't it perfect! This week Isabella's Challenge is to use a food related image in your project, just got this one in before the deadline:).

I've based it on Jo's pretty sketch at Sweet Stampin' and I'm also entering it into A Spoonful of Sugar, where the challenge is to 3D something. The theme at Charisma Cardz is "Quote me" and you can quote me on this one any day:).

Image is printed onto Basic Grey DP from the Kioshi pad, which is used for all the card. Cup and ribbon coloured with Copics and Glossy Accents, cut out and stuck with silicon glue to give dimension. Ribbon and gems from stash, Martha Stewart lattice arch punch used. I put the swirl on top of the coffee with my Copic blender pen, I'm pleased with the way this looks.

Spring is on the way - I hope!

This clean and simple card uses Phindy O'Neill's digi image Birds Go By, which is an autumnal scene. I've changed it around by adding some spring buds and foliage to the tree, it's coloured with watercolour pencils. The DP is an Artylicous CD paper, the sentiment is Craftwork Cards and ribbon from stash.

I'm entering my card in the Spring is in the Air Challenge at A Spoonful of Sugar, Cupcake Craft's Keep It Simple theme and the Creative Belli Challenge to use ribbon.

It takes all sizes...

Shirleys2Girls are sponsoring this week's Digital Tuesday Challenge, which is to create a Valentine's card for a loved one. I've used the adorable digi image "All Sizes" which is part of S2G's relaunch as a digi company. I printed the image twice and decoupaged the elephant couple as well as adding a few extra hearts. Coluoring is with Copics and Stickles, the black sparkle embossed sentiment is from Elusive Images. The DP has been in my stash forever, sorry don't know who made it and I've cut a scalloped rectangle with a Nestie. I'm also entering my card for A Spoonful of Sugar's Challenge, which is to include Hearts, and for Pile it On's challenge to include anything digital.

Happy New Year and First Card of 2010

Happy New Year to everyone and I hope you had a wonderful start to the new decade, whether you were partying or spending time quietly at home. We've had the most frustrating start to the New Year, having planned to go to the racing at Cheltenham after collecting sons from various parties this morning. There were two inspections of the course, we had just about arrived when it was confirmed at 11.30am that the racing was on. The first race was run and it was clear that some trainers and jockeys were unhappy with the ground and there was a delay of nearly 3/4 of an hour while a deputation walked the course and finally agreed that racing continue. But over a third of the horses due to run were withdrawn, including most of the star horses we'd travelled to see. Whatever the decision, the racecourse staff would be unpopular, this seemed to be the worst of all worlds though... Oh well, such is life:).

Back to cardmaking, I finished this card last night, which began when I read Crafty Cardmaker's Challenge, which is called Favourites of 2009. No, I'm not listing my favourite cards, this is about new/favourite products or techniques and I've included several in my card. 2009 has been the year that I reverted to my childhood and enjoyed colouring in :). So my favourite new products have to be Copics, which I'm beginning to get to grips with. An also-ran for 2009 is Spellbinder dies; I'd just begun to use Nesties last year and they are high up on the favourite list. The technique that I've really enjoyed using is masking, following a demo I bought some Frisket mask and have really enjoyed combining images ever since, as I've done here with the two Whiff of Joy stamps.

I've used Nikki's sketch from A Spoonful of Sugar for my card, tweaking the circle into the large snowflake. The colourway is based on this week's Copic Colour Challenge, which uses YG03, BV02 and B93. I must be slipping, I only have Light Crockery Blue and had to substitute for the other two :). Lovely colourscheme though, which gave me the chance to use the spotty Fancy Pants DP which I bought and stroked but hadn't cut into. The green DP is a Magnolia paper that, again, I hadn't cut into. Small snowflakes are from a Woodware punch, large flakes a Spellbinders die, ribbon from stash.

Monochrome Christmas

This is a quick posting of a card for Spoonful of Sugar's monochrome challenge. I learnt how to make cards with a swinging centre a few weeks back when I went to a class at Made by You in Swindon. It's a tricky card to take a good photo of but essentially it's folded so that the centre square hangs as though it's suspended, you can decorate the front and the back of the square. I opted for a clean and simple card, using clear Hero Arts stamps for the image and the border. They are stamped in Versamark and embossed with crimson powder.

The picture below isn't for the monochrome challenge; it's another of the swing cards, this time experimenting with a circle centre. The image is a digi from Shirleys2Girls and I used Paint to change the image so my reindeer had a back view as well as a front one :).

Quick Christmas Flowers

I've a couple of cards to blog today, first of all this is a quick and easy card that uses a downloadable freebie image from Fred She Said, aka Tracey. I have bought some lovely images from Tracey (lost in the hard drive crash, must sort out) and she is very generous with her freebies too. The flower is ready coloured, I've layered it and used foam pads to give it depth. Once the card was assembled I added lots of blue and silver Stickles.

The flower is mounted on a circle cut from mirri, the sentiment is Hero Arts, paper from an old Dovecraft pack. The flowers make a very simple but effective card, thanks Tracey! I'm entering the card for a few challenges:

• Saturday Spotlight - Christmas Flowers
• A Spoonful of Sugar - non-traditional colours for Christmas
• Pile It On - Tinsel Town
• Stamp Something - Glitzy Somethings
• Paper Play - Christmas without red or green
• Creative Card Crew - Christmas
  

Another to add to the flock of angels

Here's another of those beautiful angels from Michelle Perkett, this is the Holly Angel again, done in non-traditional colours this time, what do you think? Image is coloured with Copics and a silver marker pen, the background is painted with Distress Inks in Weathered Wood and Dusty Concord. Background paper is a magazine freebie, sentiment and the scalloped card are from Craftwork Cards.

I've made this card for three challenges:
A Spoonful of Sugar - non-traditional Christmas card
Allsorts Challenge - Purple
Cute Card Thursday - swirly girly

Orange, the colour that doesn't rhyme...

Whiff of Joy had a tricky colour combo for their Challenge this week of orange, brown and cream, I've just managed to get my entry finished. When I saw their new range of stamps, from Norma Fickel, I couldn't resist them and wanted them all! After last week at the NEC my survival instinct took over LOL and I opted for just one. Isn't this just adorable? Very European style, quaint rather than cute...

I've followed the sketch for this week's challenge at Stamp Something, a great sketch by Ann of Raindrop Echo Designs, who, like me, is one of the designers for My Grafico Challenges. I'm also entering this for A Spoonful of Sugar's Challenge of a card for Baby's First Christmas.

I wanted a soft, natural look and bottled out of using my Copics, the image is watercoloured and edged with Distress Ink. I stamped the sentiment in Distress Ink too and I distressed the edges of the image and the sentiment with my scissors. Image and paper are matted onto bronze pearlescent card. The main DP is My Mind's Eye, the smaller one came from a small bargain pad in my stash. The wide orange ribbon came from a box of chocolates and I used punches for the flower and snowflakes. Be prepared to see much more of this stamp :)

Meet the Fab-boo-lous Jinx the Minx

Here's my first card using the new Shirleys2Girls stamps for Hallowe'en. Hallowe'en is not something I'm into in a big way, but Jinx the witch is simply irresistible, love her bat necklace:). I've also used one of their "Spookies", a small stamp with a pumpkin on.
I've used Jinx for several challenges:

• The sketch is from Sketch & Stash Challenge. Old stash is the purple buttons and new stash the new stamps which you can buy here.
• This week, Simon Says Boo! Make a Halloween Card
  
• A Spoonful of Sugar's Challenge this week is also to make a Halloween card
• Just discovered a new-to-me challenge blog, 2RedBananas has a Halloween theme as well
• Cupcake Craft Challenge is to use stitching and buttons.

Jinx was stamped onto white card and onto DP. The white card was coloured with Copics and paper pieced onto the DP. Image was mounted onto pearlescent card and layered. Ribbon and buttons were from stash, I've stitched around Jinx and around the outside of the card. Spookie was coloured with Copics and cut out. Papers are free downloads from the generous Summer Driggs, apart from the spotty purple paper which is from Crate Paper. I've used Glossy Accents on the Spookie and on Jinx's hatband.