Pink Magnolia

So how was your weekend? Isn't it strange being back to normal after a three day weekend? A challenge card for you today and this one is for the Simon Says Challenge. I've been meaning to do a challenge for these guys since the blog started but time never seems to be on my side. Anyway I've managed to get this done for the wonderful sketch they have this week, but you need to hurry 'coz today is the last day before a new challenge!



Materials:
Stamps - Magnolia; Woodware sentiment; Wendy Rhodes swirls
Inks - VersaFine Onyx Black; Colourbox chalks
Colouring - Distress inks; Watercolour pencils; Marvy Le Plume watercolour pens
Papers - Basic Grey; Own made
Usual Suspects - Silicone glue; Paper trimmer
Other - Raffia; White gel pen; Embroidery thread

Get Your Lovely Apples

Hey everyone, hope that if you are lucky enough to be having a three day weekend that it is a fun one for you. At the moment my other half is scrapping glue and bits of wood off of the bathroom floor, I've had a bit of reprieve to post this card, good excuse I thought :)

Bank holiday weekends are for DIY aren't they? We got thrown out of Homebase yesterday, what we had not factored in was that they close at 4pm and we got there at 3.40pm D'oh.

The look of panic on our little faces as we heard the 'Choose, pay and get out NOW' over the tannoy at 3.45pm. So we went into Mission Impossible - bathroom floor mode and split up to get the stuff on our long list.

Having asked one of the staff where the sealant was I then got a lecture on the different types of sealant and, although very useful, all I could think was 'I haven't got time for this! Why did I pick the only person in Homebase who takes an interest in their job?'!

No-one else seemed that worried that the shop was closing, this is how non-DIY we are, we do not know the 'Way of the DIY shop' on a bank-hol, Sunday afternoon.


Anyway onto the card! The stamp is one of the lovely Summer collection from Whiff of Joy and is coloured in with distress inks and watercolour pencils. There is machine and hand-stitching on this card and the apples are drawn by me ('coz I don't have any apple stamps!).

The beautiful vintage gold metallic thread lace is from my wonderful friend Siri, who sent me a gorgeous ribbon and button RAK from her Grandmother's stash, they are so lovely that I want to use them for something special :) Siri is an interior designer and if you are looking for some ideas for your craft space have a look at her new venture.


To all you DIY-ers out there - we feel for ya brothers and sisters.

Materials:
Stamp - Whiff of Joy
Ink - Versafine Onyx black
Colouring - Ditress inks; Watercolour pencils
Papers - Basicgrey; K&Co
Usual Suspects - Paper trimmer; silicone glue; 3D-foam
Other - embroidery thread; Metallic thread; Sewing machine; paper distresser; Siri's lace

A Little Birdie

A 'Thank You' notelet card for you today and this one uses the so cute My Cute Stamps Matryoshka Dolls set. You can tell I love this set can't you? I seem to keep going back to it. Well, it is so versatile!

We seem to be having a day of nice weather! Shock! Let us hope the weekend is the same. Have a fab Friday.


Materials:
Stamps - My Cute Stamps Matryoshka Dolls
Ink - Versafine Onyz Black
Usual Suspects - Silicone glue
Other - Cuttlebug, Nesties; Ribbon; Kraft card

News Time Thursday

Hey all, I was hoping to have something to show you today but I'm having one of those mojo-free moments so I thought I would share some candy news. Create 4 Fun has some Copic ciaos up for grabs to celebrate 5,000 visitors and their online shop. Well done guys.

Other things you might be interested in, There are some challenges and a guest DT call up for Instyle Stamps so pop along to their Wednesday Challenge on the Instyle Blog to find out more.

Does anyone know anything about laying flooring in a bathroom? We have a very old, moth-eaten (literally) carpet that we want to replace with lino or something but do you have to put a water-proof lining underneath? So guess what we are doing this bank-holiday! :)

Hope you are all having good Mojo-full days :)

Shimmerz Spritz Is Here!

Shimmerz Spritz is here and my DT pack arrived just in the nick of time, so I have my first of many Spritz makes to show you today using colours Baby's Breath and Bed of Roses.

I can tell you that I love this spray, (and I'm not just saying that coz I'm on the DT!), the shine is amazing and I love the coverage. There are 20 colours launched today over at the Shimmerz shop and if you pop to the Shimmerz blog you can see what everyone has been doing with their Spritz and see if you are one of the lucky three to win some Spritz.

You still have a chance to win some Spritz though, just sign up to the FaceBook Page to be in the draw.



I have a confession! I love my Spritz so much that I had to order some other colours off of Stacey (I'm a very naughty girl!).

More Crafty News

Two posts in one day?

I've been meaning to tell you guys that I recently got a promotion with Making Handmade Cards. Some of the more eagle-eyed of you might have noticed from my new blinkie in the sidebar that I am a full blown DT member. They have some exciting things planned so get signed up for the priority notice emails to be the first to know about what is going on and whilst you are there you can get a sneak peak too.

Other news:
Dottie's World is having a party with games :) and you know how I love games :) so pop over to their blog to take part.

There is a new challenge blog starting at The Next Level and they have some blog candy up as well so go check them out.

And then some candy notices:
Sandra over at Paper Fantastics has some yummies up for grabs 'til 27th May
Anki over at Kortfralst has yummy candy too until June 6th - the Swedish National Day
Gayle over at Little Bird Designs has some yummies to celebrate her birthday 'til 31st May

Have a fab day All

Sugar Sugar Time For Tea And Some Tea Time News

You could not get a Tea Time more sugary sweet than this :)

This month the Project of the Month over at the Sugar Sugar challenge blog is door hangers and here is a 'Come On In, It Is Time For Cakes' door hanger that I shall be putting up on my door. LOL.

And all you guys that have been waiting for the Kaboodles Doodles Challenge blog to challenge us again there is a new challenge and a DT call running at the moment. There have been a lot of changes over at the Kaboodles Doodles blog, a few of us had to move on due to different commitment strains, unfortunately it was a big hit 'coz it all happened at the same time! But on the plus side it means that there are some DT spaces up for grabs! So pop over and have a look and they have a fab sketch that I'm hoping to have a go at later.




Blog candy notice - the amazing Debbie at Passion For Crafts has some equally amazing blog candy up for grabs with stamps from Sugar Nellie, copics, K&Co papers; nesties the lot! Us mortal bods just can't compete :)

Materials:
Stamps - Sugar Nellie; Papermania Alpha
Inks - Colour box chalks
Colouring - Koh-i-noor; PrismaColor; Derwent; Sansodor
Papers - Freebies from Cardmaking and Papercrafting Mag
Usual Suspects - Paper trimmer; glue dots; double sided tape
Other - Dimension glue; Cuttlebug; Nesties

Darla Does The Housework

Boy I wish she would come round to my place - it needs a good clean! A late post today and I have no excuse. Where does the time go? Well it certainly wasn't from doing any housework.

The lovely Darla here is from InStyle Stamps and is coloured in with a mix of prismacolor pencils and my new Koh-i-noor pencils, which I've been trying to get my hands on for a while but they are very hard to get in the UK, well until Elizabeth from Elzybells Art Stamps started to supply them. Thanks Elizabeth I love them!

I might also have done some more hand-stitching. Ok so this is now reaching obsessive heights I reckon :) Can I even make a card now that does not have hand-stitching on it?

Don't forget that there are a couple of challenges up on the InStyle Blog to play with - the Wednesday Challenge and the Thank Thursday Sketch Challenge - so plenty to be getting on with if you are bored ;) Of course you could always go do some housework instead!



I reckon my mind is very tidy then! Hope you are all having a lovely weekend.

Materials:
Stamp - InStyle Stamps Darla
Colouring - Kor-I-Noor pencils; PrismaColor Pencils; Sansodor
Papers - HOTP
Usual Suspects - Paper Trimmer; Silicone glue; Double-sided tape;
Others - Nesties; Cuttlebug; embroidery thread; white gel pen; buttons

Get Ready For A New Sparkly Spray

OMG I am SO excited, Shimmerz is launching their sparkly spray Spritz back on the market on the 20th May and I can not wait to get my hands on some. I'm still waiting for my DT pack but many of the other girls have got theirs already and are raving about it (I'm just going to have to move to the US!).

BUT You guys can get your hands on some too coz if you go to the Shimmerz blog you will find some BLOG CANDY. Yummy sparkly BLOG CANDY.


Right, just off to look out for the postman :)

Stand Out From The Crowd

A simple card today which happens to fit well with the 'Minimal' challenge that is going on over at the Creative Card Crew this week.

I've managed to do another challenge card - yippee!

So this card has been nestie embossed and I've stamped directly onto it with this gorgeous cute Matryoshka Dolls stamp from My Cute Stamps. The image has been coloured with PrismaColor pencils and Sansodor and I might have done a little hand-stitching again :)


Materials:
Stamp - My Cute Stamps
Ink - VersaFine Onyx Black
Colouring - Prismacolor; sansodor
Usual Suspects - Double-sided tape
Other - Cuttlebug; Nestibilities; ribbon; embroidery thread

Wednesday Is InStyle Stamps Challenge Day

The challenge is on over at the InStyle Stamps blog which this week is to incorporate flowers into your design. All us lucky DT girls got the wonderful Leila to play with, she is just beautiful and summery. Play along and you could win a free image download of your choice.

I felt inspired to use an acetate front to give a 'by the water feel' with a white wash card from Core-dinations and a little distressing to give that 'by the beach' feel :) The papers and flowers are fab double-sided freebies from the UK Cardmaking and Papercraft magazine and I've coloured lovely Leila with copics and promarkers.



So don't forget to join in at the InStyle blog and also have a look at what the other lovely DT members have done with Leila.

Materials:
Stamp - InStyle Stamps
Colouring - Copics; Promarkers
Papers - Cardmaking and papercraft magazine
Usual Suspects - Paper trimmer; Double-sided tape; Scissors
Other - Pearlescent glue; Core-dination white wash; cuttlebug; embosing folder; sand paper

Follow Your Dreams

I promised you are card today after the stitch work yesterday and here you go. A simple Sentiment card and this one is for the challenge over at Caardvarks which this week has a Quote challenge going on.

I've used the Basic Grey Boxer papers and made the lined paper and sentiment in photoshop and printed onto photo-paper. I've also used a Basic Grey rub-on and I'm sure that you will recognise the border as a a nestibilities set.

The ribbon is a white satin ribbon but I've given it some extra sparkle with my Shimmerz Angel Wings paint. And your eyes aren't going funny - I've slightly curved the side of the card as well :)



Materials:
Papers - Basic Grey
Usual Suspects - Paper Trimmer, Scissors; 3D-foam; Silicone glue
Other - Computer; Printer; Cuttlebug; Nestibilities; Ribbon; Shimmerz Paint

My First Creative Embroidery Piece

In February I dyed some fabric and threads all the colours of the rainbow in my creative embroidery course. Well I've used some of the fabric to make my first piece of creative embroidery that I've taken from first designs principles through to a finished product - Hurrah! And ok, so a four year old child could probably do a better job, but I enjoyed it :)


Card tomorrow - promise ;)

Sugar Bowl Challenge

A challenge card today and this is for the sketch over at The Sugar Bowl. The papers are from the Bloomin' kit from Designs by Krista. I've coloured the Gorjuss girl with my PrismaColor pencils and of course finished the card with some hand-stitching.


Materials:
Stamp - Sugar Nellie Gorjuss
Ink - Versafine onyx black
Colouring - prismacolor pencils; sansodor
Papers - Designs By Krista
Usual Suspects - Paper trimmer; Silicone glue; Double-sided tape
Other - embroidery thread; Buttons; Ribbon

InStyle Stamps Wednesday Challenge

Hey All, I just wanted to let you guys know that there is a new slot over at the InStyle Stamps blog called Wednesday Challenge with a fab free stamp prize.

This week the challenge is for a Mother's Day card (so you UK guys can get a head start on next year's Mother's day!) and to use polka dots in your design.

So here is mine. I've used some fabby polka dot paper that I received as a lovely suprise RAK (thank you Claire) and some embossed dots as well just to cover all bases :)

The lovely Daisy is coloured with Promarkers and copics. Don't forget that you can get some of the InStyle Anime Stamps as digi-downloads now.


Materials:
Stamp - InStyle Stamps; Woodware sentiment
Colouring - Promarkers; Copics
Usual Supects - Silicone glue; double-sided tape; Paper trimmer
Other - cuttlebug; embossing folder; sizzix flower; Organsa ribbon; White gel pen

At Last!

I've had time to play with my Ms Anya stamps. I thought that I would join in with the challenge over at Creative Card Crew which this week is about embossing. I've embossed the pearlescent tulips with my cuttlebug and added some hand-stitching and glitter glue to finish the card. Ms Anya is coloured with my copics and promarkers.

I've been completely thrown by the bank holiday. I thought it was Tuesday today!



Tasha from the Creative Card Crew has a fab game running at the mo with some totally yummy candy including the much sort after copic pens and other lovely crafty stuff. So to find out how to join in pop along to Millie's Magical Moments.

Materials:
Stamp - The Greeting Farm
Ink - VersaFine Onyx Black
Paper - DCWV
Colouring - copics; promarkers
Usual Suspects - paper trimmer; scissors; glue dots; double-sided tape; White gel pen
Other - Cuttlebug; embossing folder; glitter glue; embroidery thread

Welsh Dragon

Ok so I think that I might have over-done the Welsh theme with this card! LOL! It is a card for my OH's Dad's birthday and well, he is Welsh so we thought we would go for red, green and white. Perhaps a rather loose inspiration for a colour-scheme? But still, it makes for a bright card don't you think?



Materials:
Stamp - Dustin Pike; Woodware sentiment; Stamps Away; Foam star stamps
Colouring - Copics; Promarkers
Usual Suspects - Paper trimmer; double-sided tape; 3D-foam
Other - Ribbon; Cuttlebug; Embossing folder

Baby's First Birthday

I received my DT stamps from My Cute Stamps a couple of days ago and I can tell you I am sooo excited! Here is my first DT card and it is a card for my Nephew's first birthday. I just love the papers for a baby's first and just had to patchwork the image - so cute.

I've combined two stamp packs the Birthday Numbers and the Circus Animals for this card. The ickle 'One' Candle is just the cutest.

Ok so I think I might be in Cute-mood today! Getting ready to see lots of small nephews - four in total LOL!


Materials:
Stamp - My Cute Stamps; Stamps away sentiment
Inks - Versafine Onyx black
Papers - HOTP
Usual Suspects - Paper trimmer; silicone glue; 3D-foam
Other - Nestibilities; Cuttlebug

Bebopaloopa, Here's Some Paper

Saturday and it is Sunny in my neck of the blogosphere. I have a fabby InStyle Digi-Stamp to show you today called Poodle Skirt. Isn't it cool? For some reason I just thought it went perfectly with this 50-60's style car paper. I wish I had a car-shaped charm to go with it :)

Don't forget to have a go at the $50 competition over at the InStyle Stamp Blog, you still have a day to get your entry in.


Hope you all have a lovely weekend. It is Bank Holiday Weekend here in the UK - Wahoo. Have a good one.

Materials:
Stamp - InStyle Stamps Poodle Skirt
Colouring - Copics; Promarkers
Paper - DCWV
Usual Suspects - Paper trimmer; Silicone glue; Double-sided tape
Other - raffia; Nestibilities; Cuttlebug

Colour Create Challenge Week 13

Wahoo, I've managed to do another Colour Create Challenge. This week the colours are Orange, Green and Brown, inspired by this piccy:


What a fab colour combo, I would not normally have thought about them but they were great to play with. The optional challenge is to make the card a male card.

Hope you like what I've come up with. I've used one of Dustin Pike's images, coloured with my promarkers and copic pens and finished with some hand-stitching.



There is a Mother's Day competition going on over at InStyle Stamps where you can win a cash prize - $50 (or very slighly less for internationals to take into account paypal). You Better get over there quickly as the deadline is 11:59 PST Sunday, May 3rd. So you can still make it.

Materials:
Stamp - Dustin Pike; Stampendous Sentiment
Colouring - Letraset Promarkers; Copics
Papers - HOTP; GCD Studios
Usual Suspects - Double Sided tape; Silicone glue; Paper trimmer; 3d-foam; scissors
Other - Embroidery thread; glitter glue