Less is more - a bit of bling

Sorry to be MIA a while, I am dealing with some unpleasant stuff just now and finding anything creative a struggle.  This card is a variation on one I made before for Christmas and it's for Less is More's a bit of bling challenge.  The Stampin' Up tree is embossed with dark green, the sentiment is also embossed.  A narrow strip of red on the inside highlights the border of the card and the bling is on top of the tree.
My card is also for:
StampsRUs - emboss it
Incy Wincy - trees ,trees and more trees!
Stamptacular Sunday - anything Christmas
Crafty Cardmakers - heat embossing

Phindy's Place Challenge #82 - Christmas Cards

 

I'm sorry to be late with my card for this week's Phindy's Place Challenge.   I've a fairly simple card showing off the fabulous Power Nap image.  This would work great with a paper pieced armchair, I chose to simply colour using my Copics.  There's a charm of a sleigh hanging from the twine.

Fred She Said Wonderful Winter/Christmas Blog Hop

Welcome to our Fred She Said Winter Blog Hop!  We are having a hop with some great prizes, if you have arrived here from my friend Val's blog you're in the right place, if not you'll want to start from the beginning at Tracey's blog.  I've a card using the new Christmas poinsettia lantern to show you, isn't it beautiful.  I've printed it twice, coloured it with Copics and layered it and added lots of stitching, the sentiment is included with the image.  I have a very short hidden word for you to collect for the hop:  my word is "and".





Now it's time for you to continue hopping on over to the lovely Debbie's blog to find some more hidden words.
My card uses the sketch at Sweet Sketch Wednesday

Santa Tag

I'm enjoying a visit from my mother, not much time to craft but last night I sneaked a few minutes to play with new stash from the NEC and made this tag. I'm very into red and white for Christmas at present, what do you think?   The top is shaped with a new label Nestie, the white embossed Santa and sentiment are from a Butterfly Kisses stamp set, again bought at the NEC and unused till now.  The tag was a little flimsy so I added a white back, punched a border to show the white, punched a few snowflakes and gave them red gem centres and added some baker's twine.
My tag is for:
CAS-ual Friday - tag you're it
Stamptacular Sunday - punch it
Cute Card Thursday -reds for remembrance
Pile it On - traditional Christmas
Fabulous Friday - embossing
Christmas Stampin' All Year - stamp never seen ink
Shopping our Stash - never been inked
Pink elephant - embossing
Hooked on Craft - something punched
Bows'n'Berries - tags

Double embossed

You can't get much more simple than today's card:  sentiment by Butterfly Kisses is silver embossed in the space left by the embossing folder, I used pearlised card. I toyed with gems on the snowflakes but in the end I left well alone.  Busy week coming up, hope to come up for air at the other end of it!
My card is for:
Kenny K's - emboss
Fabulous Friday - embossing
Floweret - Christmas
Mami Doodles - Christmas
Wags'n'Whiskers - Christmas
Delightful Challenges - snowflakes
Little Miss Muffet - simplicity
Papercrafting Journey - embossing
Fab'n'Funky - alright on the night
Papertake - first Christmas
Make my Monday - c&s, emphasis on the sentiment

Have a purrfect day

Here's a quick card from me before we head off for a second day at Cheltenham races; we both had a winner yesterday so we have paid our way so far, hopefully we can better that today:).

My card uses the new Purrfect Day stamp set from Stamp Addicts, you can buy it here .  The cat was stamped and cut with a Nestie, the sentiment, fishbones and paw prints are all part of the set, I've white embossed them.  The DP is My Mind's Eye and some Kraft, I used a MS punch on that strip card.

My card is for:

House that Stamps Built - sketch

Papercraft Journey - embossing

Dutch Dare - punches

Glitter Geeks - humorous

Frosted Designs - embossing

Craft Barn Blog Candy - not to be missed

I wish I lived nearer to the Craft Barn - or at least that I didn't have to sit on the M25 for hours to get there!  Great shop, fab classes and today they have amazing candy - click here for the details.

Less is More - one layer and leaves

 

A very quick Less Is More posting here as we are off to the races in a few minutes, I have yet to get changed and dry my hair and now my fingers are all inky!  The theme is a favourite of mine, leaves, and I have a longing to CASE some of Chrissie's cards, but for now I've used my No More Shims with a stencil I bought last year at the NEC and couldn't get to work.  The NMS makes it really easy!  I've sponged some ink on, added a Butterfly Kisses sentiment bought this year and coloured the berries.  Not much empty space here, may try half the wreath only but then will need a different sentiment...  bye for now

Phindy's Place Challenge 81 - Thankful

 Welcome to this week's Phindy's Place Challenge, which is all about being thankful.  My Thank You card uses an old favourite, Mrs Comfy and Pogg.  Here Mrs Comfy is being careful to keep Pogg dry as they go for their walk:).  I really wanted my image to be a good size so I could enjoy colouring it without agonising over tiny bits of image, so I chose to make it an easel.  Image is coloured with Coics and Distress Ink.  The DP is Basic Grey Sweet Threads, I added a computer generated sentiment, some stitching, some buttons, a Martha Stewart punch and a bit of glitter for the puddles.

My card is for:
Basic Grey - anything goes
Pile it On - give thanks
Incy Wincy - stitching
iCopic - thank you
Digital Tuesday - anything goes
Creative Card Crew - thankful
Sisterhood of Crafters - giving thanks
Penny's Paper Crafty - give thanks
Digistamps4Joy - with gratitude
Paper Pretties - buttons
Aud Sentiments - thank you

Don't be gnomeless!

Today I have a monochrome card to show you, using the Gnome Sweet Gnome set from Stamp Addicts, I've decided tto leave the sentiment off for now, really he could be used for all kinds of things.  As usual, he's coloured with Copics, edged with Distress Inks.  The DP is, I think, My Mind's Eye for the large square and some Stampin' Up in front of it.  I've stitched round all the DP and added a MS punched fence in kraft paper, with some twine around it.  And that's it, this little chap doesn't need too many embellies...

My card is for:
Sketch'n'Stash - sketch (new stamps, old DP)
Ooh la la - stitching
Totally Papercrafts - stitch it
Anything Goes - stitch it
Bearly Mine - one for the boys - Get Well Soon Donna!
Craft Your Passion - anything goes + brown
House of Gilli - monochromatic
Incy Wincy - stitching

Treed!

Yes it is still a tree stamp but not one of my usual trees:).  Here is another card using the Purrfect Day set from Stamp Addicts.  The tree image is for half the tree, split lengthways so it is really easy to match up and make the tree as long as you need.  I stamped some extra leaves and added them on Pinflair glue for a bit of dimension and I masked the tree so my smaller cat could hang from the branches. Coloured with Copics, background inked with Adirondack Denim.   Sentiment is from the set too.  I've followed this week's Sketch Saturday, the gold panel uses a Tim Holtz embossing folder, the bright colours are meant to pick up on my ginger cat:).
My card is for:
Sketch Saturday - sketch
Cheerful Stamp Pad - trees
Let's Ink it Up - favourite technique - mine is masking
Penny Black & More - all creatures great and small
Just Some Lines - light blue and orange
Crafty Catz - anything goes

Have a purrfect day

Here's a second posting from me for today, this time using another new Stamp Addicts set - Purrfect Day.  I'm not a cat lover, but this set was fun to play with, here I paper pieced the bins, masking them as I stacked them up.  The bin lid is popped up on Pinflair glue.  Sentiment and fishbone stamps are both included in the set.  The background is inked with Distress Inks, DP is an old one I've had for ages; I used a Martha Stewart punch on the corners, and added twine and tiny buttons.
My card is for the following challenges:
Midnight Madness - sketch
Simon Says - buttons
Paper Sundaes - rectangle
Allsorts Challenge - anything but square

All together now...

 

I have a lot on my plate just now and making cards with random images that I see is not one of them!  However, when I saw Happy Howlidays at Phindy's Place it just whispered  "make me, make" and kept getting louder  So I gave in and made a quick card to get it out of my system for the time being...  Love that feisty little Chihuahua at the front:).  DP is Bo Bunny, I added Woodware Fluffy Stuff to the hats, think I'll leave it out next time.  Dis cut flourishy thing is Memory Box.

My card is for:

Sweet Sketch Wednesday - sketch

Forever Friends - something old (DP from last year) something new (image)

Sweet'n'Sassy - Christmas Holiday theme

Christmas Stampin' All Year - favourite sketch  - ok I don't really have one, it depends on the sketch! But I do always try to do Sweet Sketch

One Stitch at a Time - use a digi

Catered Crops - recipe (ingredients used: Christmas, green, Distress Ink, die cuts,)

I Did it Creations - Christmas

Christmas Inspirations - bows - mine are on the dogs!

Gnome Sweet Gnome

I've been using a new stamp set from Stamp Addicts called Gnome Sweet Gnome which is very different from the Trees and Scenics I've been working with, they are really fun images and here's the first card I have to show you.  I love the way he's putting his feet up on a toadstool!  Chair is paper pieced with some Basic Grey from Sweet Threads, the last scrap of it is in a strip across the card.  Mr Gnome is coloured with Copics, some Glossy Accents on his spectacles and Distress Ink in Pine Needles on both backgrounds.  I've gold embossed toadstools from the set to make the  background and embossed the sentiment too.  Hope you like my Gnomie:).
My card is for the following challenges:
Squirrel & the Fox - hats and flowers - not a Melbourne Cup hat but definitely a hat!
Aud Sentiments - make us laugh
Charisma Cardz - cutesy
Sarah Hurley - use more than two images - gnome + lots of toadstools
The Paper Variety - laughter is the best medicine
Whimsical Wednesday - anything goes
Stamp'n'Doodle - emboss it

Tag, you're it!

More NEC stash, this time two stamps from Inkylicious, the cityscape and the Santa.  I will admit this needs a bit of work, the stamp is clear and not deeply etched, I've ended up with some lines across my scene while trying to get it to stamp cleanly...  Inked with Versafine Majestic Blue, second and third stampings behind one another.  Ink brushed onto the background and some Glamour Dust added for snow and around the moon.  This is a tag for One Layer Wednesday and I'm also tentatively entering it for CASual Fridays as the bow is an over-the-edge element.  But is it clean and simple with little or no white space?  Hmm I'm not sure:)

Less is More - red & orange

 Woo hoo, for the first time in I don't know how long we have a weekend at home to catch up on things and I can play for the LIM Challenge straight away.  The first card uses new stash from the trip that Chrissie, Lady Limette herself and I made to the NEC, I have long drooled over the Stampscapes stamps, but they are even more enticing now you can buy them as unmounted, not just on woodblock.  By the time I returned to the stand I had spent, umm, a lot and I just bought the two stamps I used here.  They are stunning and this is my third inking of it, one I messed up by not being patient while the black ink dried on the glossy card.  Background is brayered with Kaleidoscope spices and I have added and Adirondack Currant Red ink sun.  Sentiment is Stampin' Up, using a bit of the one I messed up.
I restrained myself from grilling Chrissie about this week's theme during our shopping foray, had I done successfully I would have bought some orange embossing powder from WOW for the next card which I admit is a rather brownish orange...   This is my first set of Darkroom Door stamps, the detail on these is stunning and like the Stampscapes, it stamped perfectly.  This is a one layer card, embossed with Apple Red and Nutmeg, sentiment is Stampin' Up.  It's hard to see but I embossed two parallel lines beneath the leaves, they seemed to need something to stop them drifting!


And lastly a photo of two happy shoppers:)

Phindy's Place Challenge 80 - Anything Goes Using a Phindy's Place image

 Morning everyone!  First Friday of the month is time for a Phindy's Place Anything Goes Challenge - anything that is as long as you use a Phindy's Place image!    I've made an easel card using Looking Good - one of the Plump 'Uns series of images - she does look great, doesn't she?  Comfortable in her own skin...
I've coloured her with Copics, used a sketch from The Sweet Stop and added a sentiment from Create with TLC.  The DP is Prima and the diecut is by Tim Holtz.  I love this image and I love the sentiment too; enjoy your Friday everyone.
My card is for the following challenges:
The Sweet Stop - sketch
Heartsong Inspirations - embossing and/or 3 or more layers
Dream Valley - anything goes
Stampin' Sisters in Christ - fall colours
Crazy Amigos - time
Little Darlings - not square
My Mum's Craft Shop - with thanks - this is not a thank you card, but it IS all about being grateful for what you have and living life not just existing
4 Crafty Chicks - die cuts

Nautical Knots

Here's one of my cards using the new Stamp Addicts set On the Water, which also uses the dotties for the clouds.  Image was coloured with watercolours, the red sail was coloured directly to make it as bright as possible, I also reflected the red in the water.  I tied what I hoped look like nautical knots on my cardstock on the front panel of this stepper card.  This set was really fun to use, though DH says the perspective is all wrong on my scene, never mind I like it!
My card is for:
Papertake - anything goes
Shopping our Stash - sports
Try it on Tuesday - unusual card shapes
Card Cupids - more than one fold
One Stop Craft - no sentiment
My Sheri Crafts - sports
Our Creative Corner - fancy folds
Sweet Stampin' - anything goes
Poodle Parlour - let's hear it for the boys
Crafty Sentiments - more than one fold
Craft Room Challenge - for a man
Stamps R Us  -masculine theme

Red Robins in the Round

 

 This pair of robins from Fred She Said is a favourite traditional Christmas image for me.  Here it is coloured with Copics, edged with Distress Inks and added to Memory Box DP and a couple of scrolls from my Memory Box die.  This card is for the following challenges:

Sketch'n'Stash - sketch

Corrosive Challenge - with a flourish

Scrappy Frog - something that flies

One Stitch at a Time - Christmas

Little Claire's - Christmas

Bah! Humbug - diecuts

Crimbo Crackers - anything Christmas

Simon Says - anything goes