Ooh La La Challenge #161 - vintage

This week at Ooh La La the challenge is to make a vintage creation.  I've used a decoupage image, appropriately called Ooh La La, from the Yesterday's Memories CD and added a computer generated sentiment. She looks very 'Allo 'Allo, doesn't she!
I'm entering my card for:
Crafts 4 Eternity -  lots of laughs
Alphabet Challenge - L is for Lace (bloomers!)
Fussy and Fancy - all about girls
Stamping Boutique - fussy cut something

Butterfly Sympathy

The second card for today is for a dear friend after the death of her niece.  SVG file by Tina Fallon from Craftsuprint, with Memory Box DP behind it.  I cut 'antennae' from waste and added a sequin to each.  The sentiment is computer generated.
I'm entering my card for:
CAS on Sunday - sympathy
Totally Gorjuss - butterflies
Charisma Cardz - anything goes
Simon Says - spots and dots

Kind and Caring Thoughts - CD Sunday Challenge

I'm having a self-indulgent day today, making cards and leaving the chores!  I'm hoping to post several cards to my blog from my 'happy place', here is the first.
This is from the Tom Mielko CD book by Joanna Sheen, I don't think there are many (if any) images in this that I don't absolutely love.  This is printed onto glossy cardstock and decoupaged.  The backing paper is also from the CD.  I cut some seashell shapes with my Portrait and inked them up with Distress Ink.
My card is entered for the following challenges:
CD Sunday - kind and caring thoughts
Brown Sugar - sea and sand
Frilly and Funky - cool water (vintage)
Craft and Smash - shells, sand and sea
Scribble Designs - sea, sand and surf
Stempelgarten - sun, sea and ocean

Less is More Challenge week 181 - singin' in the rain

 This week our theme challenge at Less is More is Singin' in the Rain.  My first card uses an old favourite of mine, Mrs Comfy and Pogg.  Mrs Comfy was drawn by Phindy O'Neill, there was a whole series of quirky Mrs Comfy digis ! 
Second, very simple card was cut on my Portrait, the colourscheme is brown and cream, sorry it's hard to tell in the photo>

Dotty about poppies

This card is a bit of a CASE from Pinterest here, I've made it my own but as you can see I was heavily influenced!  It is made from diecuts:  MFT bow die, Memory Box poppies and Spellbinders frames.  I embossed a wall behind the frame.  Pink Petticoat digi paper used for the dots, I printed a reverse on red dots on white on the reverse and have another project in mind...
My card is for:
Virginia's View - demystifying diecuts
Simon Says - spots and dots
Addicted to Stamps - CAS
Ladybug Crafts - summer flowers

A bit of NBUS

I've been playing and have some more NBUS (never before used schtuff) to share with you today.  I got some fab Clearly Besotted stamps from a blogging friend who is giving up and saw that Simon Says Challenge this week focuses on CB stamps and using something clear.  So I inked up my stamps with Distress Ink and made a card following Sketch Saturday's layout.  I added some clear Glossy Accents to the flower centres and to one of the banners.  The diecut hearts are also NBUS, I bought the dies at Portsmouth show last month.  I'm totally in love with these stamps and they are out on my desk to play with some more...

I'm entering my card for:
Simon Says - let's be clear
Sketch Saturday - sketch
Lexi's Creations - black, white and one other colour (turquoise)
Penny Black - use dies/punches
Stamping Sensations - summer blooms
Ladybug Crafts - summer flowers

I loved the Sketch Saturday layout so much that I used it for this stencilled card, adding a Clearly Besotted sentiment from the same CD set as well as diecut leaves from a Joanna Sheen die.  The stencil is another new purchase from my visits to craft shows in the last few weeks...

I'm entering my card for:
Sketch Saturday - sketch
Crafting from the Heart - anything goes
Lexi's Creations - black, white and one other colour (kraft)

Ballerina

I've been in finishing off mode, finding images, die cuts etc. that I have already cut and making them into cards.  I printed and coloured this A Day for Daisies image months back.  Don't think she is a ballerina but the pink looks ballerina like me and I have given her a ribbon barre to use :).I decided to use her for their circular card challenge and cut a card with Grand Circles.  The background circle is embossed and then inked with Spun Sugar Distress Ink, a ribbon and some pearls finished this one off.

I'm entering my card for:
A Day For Daisies - Goofin' Around
Fussy & Fancy - it's all about girls
Lia Stampz - no designer paper
Moving Along With the Times - girls just want to have fun

Less is More - Week 180 - one layer week - adapt a finger print

 Hooray it's the weekend, which means time for a new Less is More Challenge - this is One Layer Week and just between you and me I think Chrissie has made the challenge a bit too easy this week - the card is to have an inky fingerprint on it.  If I had a fiver for every one layer card I discarded because of inky fingerprints I'd be a rich woman (ok I'd just have more cash to spend on craft stash but you know what I mean)!!!

Once Chrissie had explained the finer points to me I was a bit daunted, the fingerprints needed to be in the right place and random accident ones were still not good, but I came up with these two cards.  First card uses my Artemio chicken stamps.  The thumbprints are Vintage Photo Distress Ink and I added a bit more Distress Ink for ground cover.

Second card meant I ended up with green fingers, while 'growing' this topiary bush of thumbprints.  The pot is from an Inky Doodles set and again I've used Distress Inks to ground my image. 

Hope you all have a lot of fun with this one, I can recommend Vanish bars for getting ink off your hands LOL!

Forgotten A-boat your birthday?

There are a lot of patriotic red white and blue challenges around at present, a colour combination that always seems nautical to me, which inspired me to make this CAS card.  The boat and the clouds are cut with my Portrait and the punny sentiment comes from Pink Petticoat.

I'm entering my card for:
Creative Card Crew - masculine
Loves Rubber Stamps - red white and blue
Digi Choosday - punches, diecuts
Craft your Passion - on the move/transport
The Paper Girls - red white and blue
Sentimental Sundays - red, white and blue
Pumpkin Spice- red white and blue
Stuck on Sketches - in the water

You're a Star

Made a shaker friend for Sally, a dear friend who was here for me I needed her.  Thanks Sally xxx
There's quite a bit of recycling on this card, inspired by some fab entries to a recent LIM challenge:  the acetate is from Spellbinders packaging, the gold ribbon has Fortnum & Mason printed on it (I've used it wrong side out!).  The background behind the star has more stars embossed on it and the sentiment is from Craftwork Cards, as is the card candi that fills the shaker.  No stamping on today's card!
I am entering my card for:
Simon Says Wednesday - shake it
Simon Says Monday - start from scratch (made my shaker aperture, hope this counts)

Cute Card Thursday - reach for the stars
Just Add Ink - shakers
Crafty Catz - stars and/or stripes

Ooh La La Creations Challenge # 60 - Easel card

It's time for another challenge at Ooh La La and this week it is to make an easel card.  I've used one of Marie Rayner's lovely images from the new release, Say it with Words.  I've restricted the colour palette to black, white and red and added ric-rac, ribbon and card candy.  Hope you like my card.

CAS on Sunday

Here's a card for this week's CAS on Sunday, the challenge is a one layer card.  I've used Stampin' Up Happy Congratulations, with Distress Inks, and I doodled a border round the card with a Pigma pen.

CASE(E) this sketch 83

I went to Art Stamps at Newbury yesterday with my fellow LIM friend Chrissie and, of course, we picked up a few things to bring home!  I bought some Card-io stamps, having seen a wonderful demo using a new set called Dragonfly Garden.  I made a card based on this week's CAS(E) this sketch using them.  I love the stamps, I'm pleased with the card, however I need to practice inking the background, I would have like this to be softer and more graduated.

Less is More Week 179 - Earthtones

Saturday has come around again and it is time for a colour challenge from Less is More this week - Earthtones.  My first card uses a Memory Box die with some twine and a Little Claire stamp, I love this die, one of my favourites.

I bought some stencils and embossing paste at Portsmouth last week and have really enjoyed playing with it.  Second card uses a Sweet Poppy cat stencil.  I've embossed it, then replaced the stencil over it when the image was dry and brushed Pan Pastels on top, to give tabby cat markings.  The silk ribbon is from my stash.

Third card is also stencilled, this time in glossy black paste.  I used the same Pan Pastels colours to make the background and added a Stampin' Up sentiment.
 

Bad Hare Day

Woodware stamp bought at the Portsmouth show, coloured with Copics and framed with kraft card, garden twine added.  Fairly clean & simple.  I love this stamp!
My card is entered for:
Cards Galore - use a stamp or digi
Copic Spain - anything goes
Lia Stampz - no patterned paper
CMD - animals
Papertake Weekly - anything goes
Tuesday Throwdown - anything goes
Come and Get it - animals

Dotty

I had a super time at Portsmouth papercrafts show yesterday with my partner in crafting crime (purchasing over and above the call of duty I mean!!) Chrissie.  For a long time I have looked at the Julie Nutting 'doll' stamps and yesterday I decided to stop looking and get one - so here she is - Dotty for obvious reasons when you look at the papers she is pieced from!  The soft, summery papers are by Pink Paislee and the sentiment is from Kaiserkraft.
I'm entering Dotty for the following challenges:
Addicted to Stamps - polka dots
Allsorts Challenge - summer girls (I wish lol!)
Stampin' with the Dragon - clean and simple
As You Like It - favourite die and why - second entry with the very useful Die-lusions bow
Hanna and Friends - paper piecing
Simon Says - anything goes

Less is More - Week 178 - recycle an item

 This week our Less is More Challenge is to recycle an item on a CAS card.  I found this quite a challenge, how is this going to reduce my stash mountain lol?!  My first card uses beads from a cheap and cheerful, broken necklace.  I've made the beads into flowers on stems from an Artemio set and added a Clearly Besotted sentiment.  My first idea was to use the oval beads to make fish with fins and tail added but that didn't work...

I get dried dog food delivered by Amazon, which is much cheaper than buying it anywhere else.  Time was, the plastic sack it is sold in had an address label on and it arrived just fine.  These days it is delivered in a huge cardboard box, padded around with yards and yards of brown paper, how wasteful!  I scrunched up some of the paper and used a Tim Holtz Tattered Florals die to make a flower.  An old shirt button with gold thread finishes off the centre and I've added a gold embossed Kaiserkraft sentiment and some textured gold card to make a Christmas card, I do like the contrast of kraft and gold.

Looking forward to getting some ideas and inspiration from the LIMettes!  I will be at the Papercrafts @ Portsmouth Show on Sunday with Chrissie, would love to say Hello to any other LIMettes who are going along...

Wood you Believe?

I've a really hectic weekend coming up, all sorts of fun going on.  I escaped for a little while tonight to make this serene card for CAS-ology's Wood Challenge.  I used the de-bossed side of a woodgrain embossing folder for the background, framed two Memory Box silver birches and added a tiny Memory Box bird.  The sentiment is Technique Tuesday. 
I'm also entering Southern Girl's diecut challenge and Stampin' with the Dragon's CAS challenge.

Blue Butterfly

This CAS card was cut with my Portrait and given a blue insert.  The Clearly Besotted sentiment and the gems are a good match IRL!
I'm entering my card for:
Crafty Creations - things with wings
Simon Says - anything goes
Sisterhood of Crafters - for love of monochromatic
Incy Wincy - things with wings
Dragonfly Dreams - things with wings

Let them eat cake! - Ooh La La Challenge #159

 This week's theme at the Ooh La La Challenge Blog is such fun that I had to make two cards for it - can you tell I like cake?!  First card is from an old favourite, the Shawn Jenkins Collection CD.  I've gone very stripy here, with DP from the CD, baker's twine and even stripes on the image.  If you click on the photo you can see I've added lots of pink Stickles to the image, it shows up well in real life.  The card was edged with a Memory Box die.  Silly really, I've only ever thought to use it horizontally before until I saw an entry in LIM that used it this way.

Second card is from the new release CD, which combines Marie Rayner's artwork with fab quotes and sayings, called, appropriately enough, Say it with Words.  I've used Stickles on the flame, that lovely tonal check and the dotty paper are both from the CD and this time I've used a Die-namics bow die.

I'm entering my cards in:
 CD Sundays' Dies with Jenny challenge.
Crafts4Eternity - fabulous food
Brown Sugar - dots and/or stripes (got 'em both!)
Aud Sentiments - two word sentiment (Happy Birthday card)
As You Like It - favourite die and why - hmm, I use both of these dies a LOT and love them both but if I really have to choose then it has to be the bow which can be used for pretty much anything, Christmas, wedding, anything really