OLW - cats & dogs

I got around to making a card for One Layer Wednesday just in the nick of time!  This is another of those adorable Little Claire stamps, the ones I broke my stash diet for:).  It is very simply coloured in with Copics, the background is YR0000.  The shaped card is from Craftwork Cards.  I'll probably add an insert to my card, for once, as the Copics have bled through the front of my single layer, it's a birthday card for someone at DH's office.
I'm entering my card for the following challenges:
One Layer Wednesday - cats & dogs
Crazy Challenge - pets
Little Claire - shaped cards - I hope this card fits the challenge, it does have some shape rather than just square:)

Wishing Shoe A Very Happy Birthday

Good Morning, here is a card from me for this week's Ooh La La Challenge - a very easy challenge of Happy Birthday.  I spent a lot of time agonising over this image and trying to do something clever with it.  In the end I left it alone, it is so beautiful that it needs to be the star of the card and I made a very simple easel card.  Sorry the colours are much better IRL, not sure what went wrong with the photo...  The gerbera daisy shoe is from a lovely CD called Shoes in Bloom, with artwork from LS Brownlee.  Lovely, lovely designs with plenty of matching papers and inserts.  I've used a gerbera DP as well as one with the pink ribbons on it, some green ribbon and a few gems.  Most unusually for me, there is no stamped image at on on my card.
This card is also for the following challenges:
Scrappy Frogs - Happy Birthday
Little Claire - shaped cards
Daring Cardmakers - passion for fashion
Fairy Fun Fridays - more than one fold

Petunia Jar

This is another card that I made using the new release form Tiffany Doodles, this is called Petunias in a Jar.    The DP is Prima, I've used a wide Martha Stewart punch, ribbon from stash and a Craftwork Cards sentiment.  Image is colured with Copics, Distress Ink on the background and lots of Glossy Accents on the jar.
I'm entering my card for some challenges:
2 Sisters  - anything goes
Creations by Gill - pink and green and flowers
Crafty Catz - pink and green
Totally Papercrafts - pink and girlie
Ai Factory - pretty in pink

Petunias - new release from Tiffany Doodles

There's a lovely summery new release at Tiffany Doodles of petunias, today I'm sharing my card made with Petunia Frills, isn't this a pretty image?    I've coloured it using my Koh-I-Noor pencils, which have been very neglected since I bought them a while back.  It's worth getting out stash that you didn't get on with and having another try I reckon! 
I based my card around the sketch at Come and Get It and cut around the edge of the petunias.  DPs are Basic Grey Wisteria, the nearly plain purple has been dry embossed.  Sentiment is Craftwork Cards, lace from stash, swirls are cut with a Woodware punch.  I've another petunia card to show you tomorrow, this time using the Petunias in a Jar image...


My card is for the following challenges:
Come and get it - sketch
ABC - V is for Violet
Creative Craft - 3 or more flowers
Incy Wincy Designs - lavender and lace

Phindy's Place Challenge #57 - Summer Living

Good morning and welcome to a very summery posting for today's Phindy's Place Challenge.  DH has reminded me that this cannot possibly be summer as there doesn't seem to be a hosepipe ban in force.  This little girl would probably be hauled off into jail by Thames Water in real life!  This little cutie is called Splashy Sienna and I've challenged myself to make her a redhead, which I find tricky to colour in, I'm quite pleased with the result; her dress is paper pieced.  The DPs were magazine freebies, I've dry embossed the little squares.  The sentiment is LOTV and I've mounted it on a Prima flower, the big brads are Papermania I think.

My card is for the following challenges:
Tuesday Morning Sketches - sketch
Jac-Inks Papercrafts - warm colours
My Time to Craft - use a die cut
Truly Scrumptious - anything goes
Make it Colourful - colour a water scene
Crafting for All Seasons - anything goes
Totally Gorjuss - water, water
2 Sisters - use a digi
Sweet Stampin' - in the garden
StampsRUs - going digital
Squigglefly - paper piece your digi

Fred She Said May Blog Hop

Good Morning and welcome to the Fred She Said May Blog Hop!  You should have arrived here from Vickie's blog, if not you need to hop back to Tracey-Lynn's blog to start at the very beginning 'cause we've got some fantabulous Fred cards to show you, not to mention a HUGE prize.  One lucky winner will receive a Grand Prize of: a £15 gift voucher from Bearly Mine Designs ,a prize package worth $15.00 from Pizzazz APlenty , 3 digital downloads from CustomCreations from Carolivy  AND a $30 Gift Certificate to the  FSS Store!!!  Whew that's some prize!  To win, all you need to do is collect a word to make a sentence from each blog that you visit, when you get to the end of the hop you'll be able to enter your sentence.  Hop closes 3rd June at midnight.

I've coloured one of the new releases from Fred to show you today:  this is a cute hummingbird with petunias, you can buy this image in the store here.  You can also buy a realistic hummingbird and pre-coloured versions of both images.  There are a lot of images coloured in on Kraft paper at the moment and I wanted to give this a try so I got out some Koh-I-Noor pencils that I bought a couple of years back.  I'm quite pleased with the blending that I got from my pencils; when I tried before I could not get results I was happy with, however I think getting to grips with Copics and blending them has helped a lot:).  Dotty DP is from Bearly Mine, one of our sponsors, the stripe is by My Mind's Eye, sentiment is from Whiff of Joy and the string lace and ribbon are from stash.

Your next stop along the Blog Hop is with the really talented Robin and before you leave you need to know my word:  it is arrive.  Hope you enjoyed your visit!

My card is also for the following challenges:

Sweet Sketch Wednesday - sketch

Bearly Mine - diecuts and lace

Jac-Inks Papercrafts - warm colours

Sweet Stampin' - in the garden

Creative Craft World - 3 or more flowers
Spoonful of Sugar - things with wings

Serenity... and a card

Today I just may have had the most relaxing day ever.  We have enjoyed a few days off and today we went to Bath and visited the Thermal Spa.  The rooftop pool is just 100m or so from the Abbey, there are steam rooms with differently scented areas and there is a basement pool.  All use the hot spring water and are really, really warm.  Just blissful!

OK so despite all that laziness I do have a card to show you.  It's an "on the mend" card for a sewing friend, the patchwork block in the background is Churn Dash.  I've used Basic Grey Kioshi DP, a Martha Stewart punch and the digis are from Pink Petticoat.  The buttons at top right and the one on the flywheel of the machine are from my buttonbox.

My card is for the following challenges:
ABC Challenge - V is for violet
Creative Card Crew - anything goes
Inspirational Card Sketches - sketch
Papertake Weekly - pale, pretty pastels
Digital Tuesday - add some texture (popped up image, buttons)
Creative Craft - restful colours

Too Much Candyfloss!

Loved this new image from Mo Manning and knew it had to be pink candyfloss, remeber how sticky everything got, hair, face, clothes?  Mo's challenge this week is Distressing, I used Distress Inks on the background and distressed the edges of the brown mat outside the deckled edging.  The DPs are Papermania and Stampin' Up, sentiment is LOTV (circle) and Hero Arts (yum).  I've based my card around this week's layout at Sweet Sketch Wednesday.

My card is for the following challenges:
Sweet Sketch Wednesday - sketch
Mo's Challenge - distressing
Charisma Cardz - birthdays in pink
Tuesday Throwdown - stripes (Stampin' Up paper)
Make It Monday - anything goes

Paint Fusion

 I'm enjoying a few days off work and have lots to catch up on, so today I thought I'd show you my Paint Fusion efforts, a tag or bookmark and an altered IKEA mirror.  These were both made at a workshop with Sheena Douglass, the Princess of Paint Fusion!  I loved making the tag, which I found quite easy.  We learnt how to make the crackle background and then stamped the stalk shapes onto the tag.  We extended them with acrylic paint and added the lavender flowers, the tie and a shadow.  The background got distressed with Distress Ink, the edges were gold embossed and the whole tag was heavily sprayed with Sparkle & Shine.  Next up was a card on watercolour card which was again fun to make.  And then, in the afternoon, we came to fusioning the mirror...

I LOVE the mirror but oh I found the leaves so hard to paint.  So much so that I confess Sheena painted in qute a few for me as I struggled so much I went on strike!  The berries are all my own work, they are a thumbprint with vivid cerise paint.  Then dip the eraser tip of a pencil into bright neon blue paint and dot all over the berries, finishing off with a bit of white contrast.  My plan for the week, now I have the paints and the stamp, is to have a go at some Paint Fusion for myself, so watch this space:).

I'm entering the following challenges:
Simon Says - sparkle and shine (tag)
Everybody Art Challenge - tag
Digi Design House - anything but a card
Paper Romance - anything but a card
Dutch Dare - altered project (mirror)
Polka Doodles - anything but a card
Papercraft Challenges - heat embossing (tag)
Paperplay - sparkle galore

Wishing you sunshine all year through

Today we have sunshine and showers and this is a bright happy card to celebrate the sunshine, though it has been so dry that we really do need the rain too!  I've used a Joanna Sheen House Mouse Decoupage, I have the stamp for this image too, it's beautiful isn't it.  I've added a LOTV sentiment, some twine and some gems,  The DP is My Mind's Eye and I've cuttlebugged some snowflakes onto the yellow paper.  Yes I do mean snowflakes, in the yellow they look like stylised sunflowers to me.
My card is for the following challenges:
House Mouse & Friends Monday - May flowers
Moving Along With the Times - sketch
My Mum's Craft Shop - anything but square
Creative Craft World - anything but square
Delicious Doodles - let the sun shine
Fairy Knoll - flowers
Totally Papercrafts - don't be square
Paper Sundaes - pop it up

Flowering Branch - new release from Tiffany Doodles

There's a great new release at TiffanyDoodles, including this branch which I've turned on end into a kind of fantasy tree.    I've added Viva Pearls to the blossoms, the DP is Memory Box and the ribbon is a twill from stash.  The butterfly is a punch with more Viva pearls.

My card is for the following challenges:
Truly Scrumptious - anything goes
Papertake - bloom and grow
StampsRUs - going digital
Cupcake Craft - in the garden
Little Red Wagon - use a tree in your project

Phindy's Place Challenge #56 - Christmas in May

Phew thank goodness it's Friday!  Good Morning and welcome to this week's Phindy's Place Challenge. This week we are celebrating Christmas in May and it's a really timely wake-up call for me.  Last year I made a few cards for Christmas each month, shamefully this year this is my first card - ack!   So our challenge to you is to make a Christmas card or project - or two!  You don't have to use one of Phindy's images, but we love it  when you do - and you get a second entry into the prize draw!

I've opted for my all-time favourite image ever, the Fjord horses pulling a sleigh.  Today is my Fjord horse Barney's 18th birthday, how could I not use this image that Phindy drew!  I hoped to take Barney to the pub today as he has come of age, but he's a little bit lame so we'll have to postpone that for another day lol!  You can buy Sleigh Ride from Phindy's Place here.

My card is pretty simple really, I've coloured with Copics and given my image a heavy coating of iridisceent spray and sparkle.  DP is Fancy Pants, the ribbon, Crafty Cardworks sentiment and card candy are all silver to add to the sparkle.  OK now I'd better get cracking on some more Christmas cards, how about you?

My card is for the following challenges:
Paper Play - sparkle galore
Some Odd Girl - make a scene
Simon Says - sparkle & shine
KB Cute Monday  - anything goes using digi
Crafty Emma - holidays
Little Claire - sparkle
Stamp Scrap & Doodle - old supplies (digi and papers both from 2 Christmases ago!)

A Little (Claire) lapse from the stash diet

Little Claire do very cute sets of square stamps and last week they had an offer for four of them at a third off and I'm afraid I fell off the wagon...   I stamped the adorable Westies twice onto white card and once onto a Wild Rose Studio paper.  I mixed up elements from both this week's Midnight Madness sketch, added some card candy and an Elzybells sentiment.  Cute stamp, I'm sure you can see the temptation:).

My card is for the following challenges:
Midnight Madness - sketch
Ladybug Crafts - use orange
Karen's Doodles - bright and bold
One Stitch at a Time - anything goes
Scrappy Frogs - anything goes

Ooh La La - Guest Designer - Challenge #80 - Fancy Folds

Oops should have posted this earlier, here is my card for this week's Ooh La La Challenge, having checked out the blog there are some amazing folded projects on there to look at, do check it out.  I made a side step card with a very pretty Cosmos image.  I've decoupaged it and gave the extra petals a bit more shine with Crafter's Companion Spray & Sparkle Iridiscent.  Lovely spray, smells like pear drops and makes me feel very happy.  Oh, it gave the petals a nice shine too lol!  Back later to enter this in a few challenges I hope:)

Springtime Swing

 I was lucky enough to win an image from A Day For Daisies last month and this is the image I chose, after much dithering.  There are so many stunning images but this one is just lovely, isn't it?  She's called Springtime Swing.  I used some more paper from the Memorybox Brioche pad that I'm obsessed by at present, if you look closley you can see that the branch is the wrong way up.  Sorry but it works for the card this way up, call it artistic license lol!  I followed the sketch from this week's ADFD's Challenge but I did move the position of the 3 brads...  Sentiment is a Sheena Douglass stamp.

My card is for the following challenges:

A Day for Daisies - sketch

Pile it On - girls and boys come out to play

Moving Along With the Times - 2 Bs (brads, birds)

Word Play Weekend - child

Scrapbook Sisters - the birds

Dutch Dare - winged things

Less Is More - embossing

 Hmm embossing a one layer card sounded interesting for this week's Less Is More Challenge, so I began to play with a set of Flourishes Stamps of coffee cups that belong to by blogging (and real life) friend Val.  I thought the cups would look lovely embossed in gold and coloured with Copics on a tall thin ivory card.  When I opened the pack, they were actually glossy cards, which I thought might be a problem to emboss.  They embossed beautifully, but when I coloured on the card with Copics that was a disaster!  The ink moved around and when I put the next colour on to blend it lifted the first one off!  So the second attempt used metallic watercolours.   I wonder if it would still be a one layer card if I paper pieced the cups...

Next attempt uses a different, beautiful tall cup and is left plain.  Lovely stamps, aren't they?

And finally I was happier with the tree, which is a Sheena Douglass stamp, embossed in brown with a bit of background brushed onto it using Distress Inks.  The sentiment is also a Sheena stamp.

I'm entering my tree card for the Gingerloft  Trees Challenge
 and the Annabelle Stamps Monocromatic Challenge as well as the coffee cups for the Creative Craft World Anything but a Square Challenge.

Karma Camelli-on

When we lived in Surrey the soil was perfect for Camellias, now we have chalk and they are something that we only grow in pots.  So here's a Camellia that doesn't need acid soil, from a new digi release by Tiffany Doodles, you can buy it here.  I've coloured with Copics, added some baker's twine, a Craftwork Cards sentiment, some dry embossing and a die cut scroll, the DP is Prima. 

My card is for the following challenges:

Creative Card Crew - May flowers

Penny's Challenges - anything goes

Frosted Designs - ribbon or twine - and a Happy Birthday to Melissa and Lori!

4 Crafty Chicks -spring has sprung

Delightful Challenges - flowers

Phindy's Place Challenge #55 - Two cards, one image

 

Well Blogger certainly lived up to Friday the 13th, didn't it!  I've felt bereft without it and I hope this post is here to stay :).  For this week's Phindy's Place Challenge we are asking you to get the most from your iamges and stamps:  use the same image to make two different cards or projects.  I had my image planned out, until Phindy launched a new series of images called Plump 'Uns and I just had to use "That Moment", with her stepping onto the scale with trepidation...

My first card has a paper pieced towel, Basic Grey DP, flowers from stash and a great free sentiment from Paulette at Create with TLC.  I've used Sweet Sketch Wednesday's layout.

Second card uses Prima Madeline DP,  my own sentiment, a Marianne Creatables die cut, some gems and ribbon from stash.  It is based on the sketch at A Spoonful of Sugar.


I do hope you'll join in with our fun challenge, my cards are also for the following challenges:
A Spoonful of Sugar - sketch (card 2)
Sketchy Colours - pink, blue & green (card 2)
Flourishes - anything goes
Creative Cowgirls - anything goes
Sweet Sketch Wednesday (card 1)

More using what I have, plus Shop Our Stash!

I've printed off a topper from another unused CD Rom, this is Enchanted Dreams, another Joanna Sheen CD.  It uses artwork from an amazing artist called Jospehine Wall, look at all the little worlds within worlds and details she paints!  I've made a card following Claire's sketch from Sunday Sketch and Stamp.  Card is a gatefold, using the matcing backing paper, a LOTV sentiment (the only stamping) and a tiny punched butterfly in mirri card.   I'm also entering Paper Sundae's Magical & Mythical Challenge as well as Gingerloft's Under The Sea Challenge.
There is a new challenge blog called SOS, or Shop Our Stash, that is a theme close to my heart at the moment.   I am lucky that I can buy nice things and I enjoy getting them, but I do feel guilt as the new things I *need* that lie unloved and gathering dust.  Their first challenge is Show Us Your Stash , show off your crafting space.  Hmm... you know that rule that anything expands to fit its space... that would be my craft room.  DH and I have the biggest room in the house for our hobbies, it used to be a shop attached to the house.  We took out the shop door and big shop window onto the street and put a sash window and the front and French windows at the back.  At the time I was doing lots of quilting and the amazing cupboard I use is purpose built for quilting and now is crammed with crafting things.  You can just see that DH is expanding his fly-tying out slowly from the corner of the room...  I've a couple more pictures but for some reason Blogger is turning them sideways, drat maybe I'll get to them later lol!


Have a great day everyone, hope to see you Shopping your Stash:)

LIM - WOW - enough with the acronyms!

Of course the acronyms are Less Is More and White on White...  The Limettes are challenging us to make White on White cards this weeks and the thumbnails are an elegant vision of beauty.  Anntaurus over on the Joanna Sheen forum showed off a card made with an embossing folder that I've hardly used.  I teamed it with a bird from a Stampin' Up punch and a Sheena Douglass sentiment.  The cardstock is pearlised white from Annemarie Designs, who sell at the craft shows, nice stuff isn't it?
My card is for:
Less Is More - white on white
Papertake Weekly  - punches and diecuts

Use what you have...

Recently I've been buying CR-Roms of images for cardmaking, I've been mesmerised by the wonderful things people are creating with them.  But it's not been happening for me and I have to accept that maybe they are not how I choose to make my cards.  Then again, it's no good just giving up so I'm trying to make a few cards this week from CDs that are lurking on my desk.  This is from Viva la Divas, a Joanna Sheen CD with vintage images and sayings, you can customise the sayings which is what I've done here.  DP is Basic Grey, panel behind image is Cuttlebugged and inked, ribbon and string lace from stash.  What do you think?
My card is for the following challenges:
Pile it On - funny sentiment or image
Divas by Design - anything goes

Crafty Catz - quote or sentiment
Digis with Attitude - make us laugh
The Crazy Challenge - anything goes
Dutch Dare - sketch

Oh Baby!

Here's another card using that Memory Box Brioche DP, honestly this one was never intended to have Brioche DP but I saw that the plaid worked perfectly with the image and I had to use it for the background layer!  The image is one of the very generous freebies from A Day For Daisies, matted onto some dry embossed and inked Basic Grey DP from Porcelain.  I added some Prima flowers, which works for the Midnight Madness Sketch and sneaked in some ribbon which doesn't!  Zig-zag stitching secures the two layers.
My card is for the following challenges:
Midnight Madness - sketch
A Day For Daisies - oh baby
Bearly Mine - beautiful babies
Stamping Vacation - very vintage sewing
Card Creations & More - embossing
Sketchy Colours - pink, blue & green
 The Cheerful Stamp Pad - little girls with curls

Here come the hummingbirds!

 The long awaited new Fred, She Said designs have hit the store and they are just gorgeous!  There are cute hummingbirds and realistic hummingbirds, both are available as digis or pre-coloured.  I've several cards in progress to show you, here is a finished one.  I have chosen to colour my hummingbird with Copics and Distress Inks, however I find it really helpful to have the pre-colored images to look at to give me an idea of how to colour.  I've followed the sketch at Little Claire and used both sides of some My Mind's Eye cardstock.  The leaves were punched from a scrap of the cardstock, the sentiment is computer generated.

My card is for the following challenges:

Little Claire - sketch
Stamp something - digi
2 Sisters - distressing
Papertake Weekly - anything goes

Magical fireflies

Here's a card I made for the Sweet Sketch Wednesday Challenge, which celebrates 100 sketches this week.  My image is a freebie from A Day For Daisies, their sponsor, lovely isn't it?  I've colored with Copics, Distress Inks and Stickles.  Annoyingly, the Stickles have run a bit where I added Glossy Accents to the jar, even tough I left it nearly a week to apply it.  Hopefully it just makes the freflies light look diffused:).
The sentiment is Lily of the Valley, the DPs are Prima.

My card is for the following challenges:
Sweet Sketch Wednesday Challenge - sketch
Blogger's Challenge - nature
My Mum's Craft Shop - cute and girly

Almond Blossom

We've a great new release at Tiffany Doodles this week, both images are available as digis to colour, or pre-coloured.  I've used the Flowering Almond, pre-coloured, which is simply stunning.  I've printed it twice, cutting one out with a Nestie die and colouring the background with Distress Inks, the second one is decoupaged over the top with Pinflair Glue to give it lots of dimension.  The DPs are Prima, the sentiment is from a Do-Crafts magazine freebie stamp, lace and ribbon are from my stash.
This card is for the following challenges:
Sketch Saturday - sketch
Digital Tuesday - ribbon and lace
Dream Valley -flowers
Crafty Sentiments - flowers
Clear it out Tuesday -ribbon or trim
Squigglefly - spring flowers/ May flowers
Stamp with Fun - lace or ribbon
There She Goes - 3D flowers

Phindy's Place Challenge #54 - Embossing

 Good morning and welcome to this week's Phindy's Place Challenge, which is to use embossing, dry, heat or both on your card.  You don't have to use one of Phindy's images, but we love it when you do - and you get a second entry into the prize draw!  I used the adorable Kitty Cargo image for my card, colouring it with Copics and Distress Inks.  I've heat embossed my sentiment (Personal Impression stamps combined) and dry emobssed the wall at the top of the card.  The DP is more of that delicious Memory Box Brioche, ribbon came from my DT friend Kathy in a blog candy a while back, I have put eyelets in the corners.  The sketch is from this week's Pink Elephant Challenge.

 My card is for the following challenges:

 Pink Elephant - sketch 

Pixie Cottage - one for the boys 

Flourishes - for a child under 13 

Try it on Tuesday - something old (ribbon) something new (DP) 

Use it Tuesday - fasteners - brads 

Bunny Zoe - one for the boys 

Stamps R Us - masculine 

Woodware - blue, yellow, brown 

 

A barrowload of flowers from Fred

 I bought a pack of papers by Memory Box called Brioche which I've fallen for in a big way, here's the first of a series of cards I've made using them.  It uses the Wheelbarrow digi from Fred She Said, one of my all-time favourites.  You can buy it as a digi or precoloured here, I've chosen to colour my image with Glossy Accents and Copics.  Oh, just a hint, wait till you see the new release from FSS, some amazing images coming soon...

I've followed the layout at Sketch Saturday for my card, adding a Personal Impressions sentiment stamp as well as a Fred She Said Polka Dotty Flower. 
My card is for the following challenges:

Sketch Saturday - sketch
For Fun Challenges - lots of flowers
Scrapbook Sisters - 2 ribbons, a flower, a brad
Papertake Weekly - anything goes
Top Tip Tuesday - open challenge
Get Hippity with Ippity - flowers, flowers and more flowers
The Emerald Faerie Garden - anything goes

Birds in a row

When I saw the current Midnight Madness sketch I immediately thought of using bird images and here is my card, just in time!  The three birds are all from Tiffany Doodles, they are Woodpecker, Bluebird 2 and  Warbler Cherry Blossoms.  Having had my bright idea, reality then hit home about just how small the images needed to be unless I made a monster sized card!  I tried painting these in watercolour at 2" but was not happy with my work, I couldn't get the detail.  So I used my Copics and these squares are just 1 3/4".  The fact that they have worked so well (or at least I think they have) is tribute to the design quality, they were much easier to use so small than I epxected.  I plan to use them again at a more normal size, watch this space...

The sentiments are Whiff of Joy, the leaves are a Martha Stwart punch and the dotty paper is a Fancy Pants design.

My card is for the following challenges:
Midnight Madness - sketch
Fashionista - things with wings
Stamp Something - with wings
Creations by Gill - birds in my garden
The Paper Variety - polka dots

Ooh La La - Guest Designer - Challenge #79 Tres Chic

 I was honuored to be asked to be a Guest Designer for Ooh La La Creations Challenge for May and June and here is my first card for them, this week's challenge is Tres Chic and I have used a pyramage with two papers from their Passion for Fashion CD.  It's a detailed image that called for a fairly simple background, I decided to frame it with a Marianne Creatables Die and this inspired me to try something new and finally get to grips with embossing a die cut shape, as the frame looked nothing much at all until I embossed it.  I used my Big Shot, with the following layers:  grunge paper, platform with one leaf folded back, cutting plate, die, rubber sheet, black plastic plate.  Hoorah now I just have to remember the combination :).

Other embellishments are:  Hero Arts sentiment stamp gold embossed, gemstones and roses.

My card is also for the following challenges:

One Stitch at a Time -embossing

Sparkles Forum - anything goes

Sweet Stampin' - try something new (embossing diecut, pyramage)

Sugar Creek Hollow - embossing

Do You Stack Up? - make it pop (3D)