Game On!

 Quickie post this morning - spent a couple of hours yesterday making some CAS cards for myself to send at Christmas but then had to give in and go back to bed - humungus headache, sneezing past myself, coughing fits making my throat feel like someone was pulling barbed wire through it and then to top it all off, had a couple of hours of being violently sick!

 No idea what THAT was all about - still have a bit of a queasy tum, the sneezes, a cough and a teeny headache this morning but don't feel anywhere near as bad as yesterday - am hoping that as the day goes on I start to feel a bit better - or at least don't relapse back to the way I felt yesterday!

 

But it may be a day snuggled on the sofa with the duvet I think.

That's the medical report finished.......... LOL

 

On to the card 

Made for a boy who is as footie mad as me! Stepper card, covered with spotty paper from my stash, LOTV image matted and layered onto black and white card, PC generated sentiment with some black and white twine, all finished off with a couple of 3d football stickers and a pair of football boots!

 

Challenges -

Crafty Catz - Male Card

Tuesday Throwdown - Team Spirit

Creative Card Crew - Fancy Folds

Deep Ocean - Sporty and Outdoors

Paper Playtime - Anything Goes

Thanks for calling - am off to feel sorry for myself!x

Girly Girl!

My goodness hasn't it gone COLD??? Have got the heaters on high out here  - the house is not a bit warm either as we've been out all day at a meeting then a presentation lunch - it takes a while for the rooms to heat up so my excuse for being out here is - it's warmer!!!

Been a few days since I last posted but have made half a dozen very quick Christmas cards for my own stash over the last couple of days......... (I am starting to get sick of myself being so smug and organised....LOL)

This card though was part of a very large commission which I happily deposited with the lady today. Sorry the photo is a bit iffy - light here has been dreadful the last couple of days!

The recipient, Molly is a little over 2 years old and loves her teddy bear! So thought one of 'Lil's little fairies' complete with Ted guarding an exciting sparkly parcel fitted perfectly!

She's cute isn't she? Love her pom pom head band and her 'wand' - do you think she's trying to turn Ted into something more exciting?!

Highlighted with promarkers and liberal doses of glittery stickles, I put a metal Christmas tree charm across the top on some pinky/lilac thread and then mounted onto silver matt card.

I added a silver die cut in the top corner and threaded some sparkly gems and beads onto silver twine. The white gauzey stuff with 'snow' on it I've had in my stash for eons as I have the lilac and silver foiled backing paper.

The sentiment was PC generated and the inside co-ordinated to match.

Challenges -
Hooked on Crafts - Christmas - no red or green
One Stitch at a Time - One for Christmas
That Craft Place - Recipe - Gems/Charms/Diecuts
The Crafty Pad- Christmas is Coming
Crafty Ann's - Christmas
Lil's Little Fairies - Christmas Card for the Girls

Thanks for looking - the last couple of weeks of meetings, typing minutes and attending Presentations combined with all the travelling is starting to catch up with me now! Am beginning to wilt a bit - so will have a quick trawl through blogland and then I think my duvet is calling! x 

Pink Snow!

As promised I spent yesterday making Christmas cards. I finished off all the commissioned ones and whilst the desk was still full of christmas stuff thought I'd better at least make a start on doing some for myself.

This is an absolute FIRST for me - Christmas Cards in October? Unheard of... and after me moaning about all the christmas stuff in the supermarkets a little while ago too!!!

Normally I'm like a mad woman (well madder than usual LOL) at the beginning of December when I realise that unless I get my skates on it'll be shop bought ones to send! I know it would be far less expensive to buy a pack of cards to send but if I did that, what excuse would I have for buying all those scrummy Christmas papers and lovely stamps????????

Back to the cards -
For a change I thought I may do some CAS cards this year and experiment with what some would call 'non traditional colours'.

Here is the first to share

I stamped a variety of snowflakes onto a piece of white Linen textured card using a pigment ink stamp pad called 'Really Raspberry'. It was a cheap stamp pad and I love the colour! The stamps are all freebies from Christmas sets given away with magazines over the last couple of years.
The sentiment is also an old foam backed stamp but it's one of may favourite christmas greeting ones as I think it shouts 'happy'!

I punched a border out of some dark pink cardstock and stuck it underneath some fuschia pink polka dot paper, then added white ribbon. The polka dot piece was then glued onto the stamped card and layered onto more of the dark pink.

Then matted onto the card base using 3d foam pads.
I finished it all off by adding some crystal gems to the centre of the snowflakes for the traditional bit of Christmas 'bling'!

Challenges
Sassy Cheryl Show Me Thursday Challenge
Ooh La La- Christmas Sentiment
Stamptacular Sunday - No Rules
ABC Christmas Challenge - U for Up to you
Shopping Our Stash - Out of a Jar (my gems)
Totally Papercrafts - Christmas

Have a nice day whatever you're doing! x

Paper Piecing

Quickie post this morning as I'm planning on spending the day making a start on my Christmas cards... ok ok stop pretending to faint - I can be organised SOMETIMES!!! 
I LOVE blogland! Mostly because I've made so many 'friends' but also because I see something someone else has done and think -'Ooooh I wouldn't have thought of doing that' - or - 'I've never tried that'.
So here's one which combines a bit of both thoughts! Made it a wee while ago after visiting the lovely Jules.

I am not adventurous at all when it comes to stamping on patterned paper but Jules manages it to perfection.

Armed with several stamps (as I didn't have one complete flower and stem stamps that would have been suitable!) and some leftovers from my Ella paper pad (and yes I have still got some of it left despite my best efforts....) I set about imitating one of Jules' lovely creations.
I am pleased with myself at the result and am now wondering why I never did this before! I stitched all the papers and managed the paper piecing OK too-  popped a couple pf pearls in the centre of the flower heads.

I thought the stamped flowers looked a bit plain on their own so added some grasses and a tiny bee... and of course HAD to add a teeny bit of stickles to the bee's wings! Finshed off with a cream organza bow.

Challenges -
Gem of a Challenge - Flowers
One Stop Craft - Anything Goes
Cupcake crafts - Paper Piecing
Charisma - CAS
Poodles Parlour - Anything Goes

Off to get out the Christmas stamps - and do a little trawl through blogland with my coffee!  Have a lovely day! x

Nice Day for a ......

White Wedding!
Have been doing a few commissioned cards this week - in between the Christmas ones, I had a couple of orders for other things - so to take a break from 'Kiddie Kristmas' (will share later!!) I set about a wedding order.
This was one of those cards that I enjoyed doing and suprisingly was pleased with the result!

I used silver grey pearlised card as the base after fiddling with pale blue and pink - the grey seemed to give the card 'depth' whereas the other colours did not give as much definition as I wanted.

I used a Martha Stewart punch around the page set and cut two different sizes out of white linen textured card. 

The paper roses were made using a Marianne Die and I sat for a long time rolling and glueing!

The silver flourishes are also a Marianne Die and I used a X-Cut leaf punch, highlighting the embossed bit of the leaves and the edges with a Silver Leafing pen.

The two large hearts were PC generated and printed onto the same linen card. I have an extreme fondness for this sentiment which I have seen used several times and think it is a nice change from the usual wedding greetings.

I assembled it all together and layered the smaller card onto the larger piece with 3d foam pads and then layered the whole thing onto the silver card base again using 3d foam pads. 

After adding some Liquid Pearls onto the roses I finished it off with some small crystals in the corners and randomly on the two hearts and then glued the gorgeous rhinestone and crystal heart (another Imagine DIY purchase!) onto the sentiment heart.
 
No wedding keepsake should come without a box so made one to match!
I am sitting though and wondering if I should add a wee bit of sparkly to the rose edges? What do you think?

Challenges -
Creative Crafts - 3 of something (Hearts)
Pan Pastel - Wedded Bliss
One Stitch at a time - Song (White Wedding - Billy Idol)
Anything Goes - Make your own Emellies (
Fashionista - Anything Goes
Gem of a Challenge - Flowers
Totally Papercrafts - Make your own Flowers
Emergency Crafters - Recipe- gems, flowers, die cut shape
Crazy Challenge - Handmade Flowers

Will be off to have a trawl through blogland once I've got my coffee - have a nice day whatever you're doing! x

Eek!! A Week!!

Cannot believe it's an entire week since I posted anything... have been visiting blogs and making but sitting here realised I haven't put one solirtary thing on the blog this week!
In my defence, I HAVE been busy doing boring stuff like going to meetings and compiling two different lots of AGM papers and reports for both Club and County.......... which has seriously annoyed me as I wanted to play with paper PROPERLY instead of just typing and printing.........
I have though given myself a little bit of time each day to get on with some cards - I have a few to make for a lady who orders Christmas Cards for her great -grandchildren every year so have just one more left to do and then I shall get the camera out and share.

Get the camera out..........mmmmmmmmmmm.......... I did try so so hard with this card to get a decent picture but I cannot master taking pics of pearlised card at all - had a little blue cloud above my head as each attempt was looked at and discarded- in the end I gave up!
So this is what you get...not the sharpest but you get the general idea!

Stamped the greeting and the grasses in a light purple. The ink pad is a very very old Whispers one and I was surpised it hadn't dried out! The grasses stamp is a Hero Arts one (I think!). Clear embossed the greeting which )as the pic leaves a lot to be desired!) you can't see very well!

Embossed a frame round the greeting, tied some lilac gingham ribbon round the card and mounted it onto purple card then layered onto the tent card base with 3d foam pads.

Punched out a tiny butterfly and finished with a couple of purple pearls.
Was quite pleased with the finished article - it's a pretty card I think and the soft lilacs are a really nice shade - sometimes purple hits you in he face!

Challenges -
Southern Girls - Tie a Ribbon round it
Craftymess - Anything Goes
Lady Anne's - Anything Goes
The Cupboard Trilogy - Things with Wings
2 Sisters - Anything Goes

Thanks for commenting, appreciate it - now got myself a cup of coffee and am away to see what you've all been up to! x

Blingy Duplicate!

Finally managed to do a card for LIM - been an age since I've been able to submit anything but here's one I made earlier and not shown before which fits the challenge... well I think it does - I think there's enough white space and hope it's CAS enough for the ladies over at Less Is More!

With the challenge this week being 'silver', the card really is a take on a couple of similar (but more fussy) ones I did for golden weddings and one I just made because I had a scrummy vintage bronzey coloured button from Mum's button box... so the design is basically the same for them all just different colours and the odd layer here and there!
Think that this is one of those quick designs that you could mass produce for a variety of different anniversary type occasions by merely changing the colour of the embossing and ribbon, so it's likely that I'll do a ruby one and maybe sapphire and just put them in my stash.... am always asked for specific anniversary cards when I don't have any! 

I used white pearlised card and the stamp was a real 'cheapie' from Viva Decor, which I found in a bargain bin at a craft shop.
I really like it, hence all it's use over the last few months!

I used WOW embossing powder to emboss and because it's so fine it's perfect for the detail on the flourishes.

The stamped piece was mounted onto silver mirri card, then glued to the base card and I confess to using....... peel offs.......(aghhhhhh!!!) for the anniversary sentiment. (I found them whilst looking for my tiny little wooden blocks of number stamps - I cannot remember the last time I used a peel off!!!) 

The broad grey satin ribbon is from my stash and the beautiful blingy embellishment is from Imagine DIY and happily they hide the join!

We've had a lovely sunny day here - not warm, but blue skies.... so am feeling a bit more upbeat today! Strange how grey skies make you feel down and blue ones make you feel happy isn't it?!!
Thanks for looking and if you've left me a comment you've added to my smiley day!! x

Normal service....

has been resumed! Well as normal as possible anyway - back to the NORMAL weather - rain, rain and more rain..... honestly, stepped onto a plane yesterday in gloriously blue clear skies and temperatures of a mere 31 degrees, stepped off several hours later to a torrential downpour, black as pitch and a temperature that was stuggling to make double figures!
Taking into account the amount of washing I've done today I am convinced that numerous fellow travellers put their clothes in my cases when I wasn't watching... did I REALLY wear all these clothes?????? And joy of joys, I now have the ironing to look forward to!!! 
Do I sound slightly irriated by the fact that I am now here and really want to be back there??? Well you're right!!!
Before I pop off to have a proper look at what you've all been up to whilst I have been acquiring this lovely golden brown sun tan, (and a few inches round the middle with all the fab food....), I thought I'd better share a make with you.

I found these last few scraps of 'Paris Nights' paper in a drawer and managed to squeeze enough out of it to decorate the front and inside of a card.This has got to be one of the most gorgeous papers I have ever used - it has the most amazing sheen and a beautiful texture.

The stamp is a Papermania one which once again I confess to never inking before. I used some cream textured card and then cut it out with a nestie, mounted it onto a scalloped piece of the Paris Nights paper before layering onto the card. I cut out a corner in black and a die cut frame in the same cream card and stamped the sentiment with Versamark Onyx Black.

The fabulous black crystal swirls were a present and I really didn't want to use them! The large floral piece at the top of the oval is from the same swirl pack and I used some tiny black pearls on the stamped image for some of the chandelier 'droplets'.

The cream lace is from my stash and I made two rolled paper roses from the remainder of the paper.




Challenges -
Simon says Stamp - Glimmer and Sparkle
Card Mania - Handmade Flowers
Lollipop Crafts - Something Old (paper and stamp), Something New (Black Crystals)
Cards Galore - Anything Goes
Paperplay- Shine On
Charisma Cards - Bling/Shiny
Craft Us Crazy - Anything Goes

Thanks for visiting me - off for a coffee and a trawl through blogland! x