Debby's Fave 5 and a time to reflect

Following from the Fave 5 Christmas Cards as always there is Debby's Fave 5 of the Year. If I thought choosing 5 from Christmas was bad choosing 5 from the year has been worse!! But here they are (and there's a special message from me to you all at the end of the post).
Am also joing Mynn over at 'On a Stampage'.

First up had to be this baby card (original post here) - am not a 'baby' person really but do like frilly and fancy (sometimes LOL) so when I was asked to make a card for a special arrival I turned to Pinterest (again!) for some inspiration and this was the result

Next is another fussy one! I love this sentiment - think it's so true-  original post here

Ok - so this one isn't a card - but it does rank amongst my faves so have included it! - original post here

A 'man' card - unusual for one to be amongst my faves - cos let's face it, we all hate making them! - original post here

  I have this year made quite a few CAS cards - out in blogland many have perfected this art of CUSP ('Completely Understated and Strikingly Perfect'!!) and I have become an avid follower of several blogs who make these gorgeous cards. Here is a 'case' from one - original post here

So that's it - another year has gone past. I hope 2014 has been good to you but if it hasn't may 2015 be better. For me it has largely been a good one, some lows but many highs. 

Sad today as it would have been my darling Mum's birthday - I miss her every single day and it's particularly hard when you can't share the 'highs'  - maybe that's why the sentiment on the second card means so much to me - it IS the little things (like sharing a cup of tea with your Mum) that make life so big.

Thank you for visiting me this year and I wish you all a 2015 filled with the 'little things'. xxx

Favourite 5 Christmas Cards 2014

Debby is once again hosting her 'Favourite 5 Christmas Cards'. 

I play along every year - and every year I have trouble picking 5 cards - not cos they're all my favourites but because there's such a lot I think I could have done better!

Anyway here goes with my 5 picks -

 My fave 'twiggy tree' die used every year for a lot of my cards, and a blue glass star which I've had in my stash for simply ever!

 One which I hadn't previously blogged - done on cream base card which is a change for me - getting the lines round the edges of the layered squares reasonable straight for embossing was a bit of a challenge!

Another White on White with a splash of colour and a few sparklies!

An image from the marvellously talented Mo Manning has to appear in every list of my fave cards!

And last but not least a  card which shows a stamp I used an awful lot this year - it's detail embossed beautifully and I made a lot of cards using different coloured embossing powders and spent a lot of time sticking on teeny gems in contrasting or coordinating colours!

 Looking back on this years I did manage to make my cards using different techniques - dies, embossing and of course colouring despite trying to keep those that I had to post very thin so it didn't cost a fortune!

I hope everyone had a lovely Christmas and thank you to Debby for hosting the Fave 5 again this year!

The Night Before....

Well here we are with another Christmas Day almost upon us!
OH and I spend our festive period quietly at home and whatever you're doing over Christmas I wish you all a lovely day filled with everything you could wish for.

Sharing another Christmas card - I expect everyone is fed up with them by now. This was the first year when I have been ready well in advance and I think perhaps I missed that last week panic when I still had zillions of cards to make like usual in previous years!!

I made two cards of this design - this gold and white one and another in the more traditional red/green combo on cream card which I will save for another time!

I gold embossed all the edges of the square panels and the edges of all the petals of the die cut poinsettia.
The flourish was cut from gold card with a recently acquired holly die and I also cut another petal layer from the same card for the base of the flower.
Popped a gold pearl in the centre of the flower and embossed the greeting.

As this had a few layers and I didn't want the flower to get squashed,  it was hand delivered!
Challenges -
Crafty Sentiments - Anything Goes
Just Inspirational - Christmas
TTCRD - Anything Goes
CAS on Sunday - Christmas
Simon Says Stamp Wednesday Challenge - Anything Goes

Thanks for taking the time to comment, enjoy your Christmas. x

Trees!

Well I survived  the last 48 hours - JUST! Friday was spent cooking and baking and yesterday was the actual Party Day - think everyone enjoyed it - we came home, poured a very large Gin and Tonic for me, a not quite so large Whiskey for the other half and collapsed!! 
From today we are concentrating on our own Christmas (which as usual will just be the 2 of us and quiet) but I first need to get the Christmas Tree up otherwise it won't feel like Christmas at all!

All my cards are done and sent so am sharing some from the 'For Blogging' folder. These 3 are a variation on a theme from last year and were an original design a few years ago by the very talented Birgit.

I made a batch of these using up the odd snippets of glitter card for the green one and other odd bits for the pink and kraft ones - and of course a few scraps of lace!
Snow embossing folder on the background then the 'tree' shapes ran through the corrugating machine, pearls and lace added and some white organza ribbon then matted onto coordinating card.
The stars were punched from the oddments and another pearl added.
Am off now to get covered in glitter and tinsel (makes a change from flour) - will be back later for a chill out blogland visit. Thanks for visiting today and enjoy your day!x
Challenges -
Suzy Bee's- Anything goes with Pearls
My Time to Craft - Trees
One Sweet Challenge - Christmas
Challenge up your life - Christmas without stamps
Pixies Snippets Playground - Week 156/157
CHCCE - Anything Chruistmas

Grainy Pic!

Another bad card to photograph! Looks really grainy to me but after 20 minutes of picture taking I finally gave up and you'll just have to believe me when I tell you that in real life it's actually quite a nice card!

I made a conscious decision this year not to make cards with lots of layers that were expensive to post or even worse were well squashed and damaged when they arrived at their destination.

I popped up the snowflake edges to take the pic but it does actually lie reasonably flat -must have been OK cos it's now arrived and it's recipient said it was lovely....

Just basic white card with a piece of left over pale blue/white polka dot cardstock - scalloped edged because the left over wasn't straight and I had to disguise it to use it up!
The snowflake cut from an odd bit of white card, glittered and a centre blingy.
The PB sentiment stamped and hear embossed in white onto another teeny scrap of blue/white striped paper (the 'sister' to the polka dot one!).
 Will be paying a visit to week 155 at Pixie's Playground with my odd bits card this week too!

Challenges -
CASology - Snow
Use Your Stuff - Anything Goes
Crafting Musketeers - Bling
Crafty Sentiment - Winter
Sentimental Sundays - Ch 237 Anything Goes

I'm doing a Christmas Buffet for 45 club members on Saturday so will be up to my elbows in sausagemeat/turkey and smoked salmon for the next few days but will make some time to pop round and visit you all! x

Frosty

Title of this post describes the scene outside here this morning - beautiful - all sparkly white with a thick frost - (even the cars have turned white and blended into the landscape!) and a glorious clear blue sky - although the window up here on the top floor hasn't yet defrosted so I feel a bit like I am sitting in a white cave!

Am sharing another white card made up with odd bits of sparkly paper which I've been hoarding - (see previous post!)
Quick and easy - and because I wanted to get all sorted early it has made me use up quite a bit of christmas stuff this year although the 'seasonal stash' area is still overflowing. How did I accumulate all this stuff? I had a mega clear out 18 months ago when we moved and I swear I haven't bought any new Christmas stuff since but still I have tons of papers!

White snowflake vellum background (which is really pretty and I know why I didn't use it before now!).

Wrapped some sparkling white organza ribbon around and added a bow. Stamped the sentiment onto a scrap of vellum and clear embossed, adding a couple of tiny sparklies then tucked it underneath the bow.

Three snowflakes  die cut from glitter card and more blingy - and finished! (Card is now adorning my neighbour's mantelpiece - she thought it was really nice!)

Challenges -
Allsorts - White Christmas
City Crafter - Glittering Snowflakes
Opus Gluei - Let It Snow
Fussy and Fancy - Snowflakes and Ribbon
Crafty Catz - Last Minute Christmas
Crafty Creations - Die Cuts

Have a great day whatever you're doing. x

Winter

Winter has officially arrived here in my little part of England. And it has arrived with a BANG... snow, sleet, hail, coupled with the most horrendous gales (made worse by the fact that we are up on the top of the hills!). According to the forecast it is much the same everywhere so that makes for smiling crafters doesn't it - cos the weather is 'too bad for us to go out'..................!!!!

I have (I am glad to say) finished all my cards, now written and in the post. This is the first time for YEARS I have actually finished without having that mad rush that is usual for me.
So christmas stuff now ready to be put away for another year!!

What a devil of a job I had taking this pic - typical of White on White. I think this was made worse too by the sheen on the vellum paper.
Simple card really, tore some white pearlised card for the snow 'drifts' , used a snowflake background from a hoarded vellum paper stack ( bought about 4 years ago - one gold and one silver - so used some of it this year finally!), 3 trees cut from  the same white pearlised card then layered between the snowdrifts and liberal helpings of glitter.
The star was punched from silver glitter card and I embossed the sentiment.

 Challenges
Die Cutting Divas - No Red/Green
Incy Wincy - Snowy days
Dies r us - Winter Wonderland
TIOT - Winter Whites
Apart from the aforesaid (dusty) vellum sheet the rest was from odd bits... so it's off to the playground for me this week too!  Pixies Snippets Playground Week 154. 
Thanks for taking the time to pay me a visit - I appreciate it.
(I know people have been having trouble with word verification... can anyone tell me if it has appeared here on my blog? ) x

Last Posting Date

I am a smug little person today - spent yesterday writing my Christmas cards and discovered that in the 'Card box for Christmas' stash I only need to make about half a dozen more for some close friends.. Could this be the year that I actually have them all finished before the middle of the month???

This card is winging it's way across the pond  to our adopted niece who lives in the USA  -(or will be come Monday when I am robbed by that Dick Turpin man usually known as Royal Mail) 
Lauren is growing up fast now - she is I suppose a bit of a tomboy but has her 'girly' moments too so I am hoping that she likes this!

Stamped and coloured with Promarkers then the edges distressed and a little sprinkle of glamour dust.
The background holly paper from  my stash layered onto dark green card, then a scrap of coordinating dark green  holly paper stitched over.

A die cut corner and a great big dark green bow added, the post box given a little bit of that expanding flocky stuff (wish I knew what it's real name was......)  and finished with some red flowers and a green crystal drop.
The 'letters' were cut from a 'flowersoft' sheet which I have had for about 8 years - they just seemed to fit!
Inside done to match.

Thanks for looking today - it's a cold day here so no play possible as the green is frozen - we have been very lucky up to now -this is the first time we've not been able to get on the green this winter - for me now it will be in the warmth of the craft room for the rest of the day I think!

Challenges -
A Crafty Mess - A/Goes- Traditional Christmas colours
Alphabet -V for Variety - 3 different embellies (Flowers/Crystal/Ribbon)
Fussy & Fancy #128- Happy Holidays
Crafting with the Dragon - Christmas Time
Aud Sentiments - Bingo (Diecut/Stamp/Bling)
STAMPlorations - Stamps and Designers Choice - (September - Stamps and Markers)
Jingle Belles - Anything Christmas Goes
Completely Christmas - Anything goes/Twist - Holly

Bloom

We had a nice lunch out today with M-I-L before she goes off (again!) on her latest jaunt to sunnier climes for Christmas. Then I popped along to the Crematorium with some flowers for Mum, stood and had a little chat and told her all my exciting news - been one of the greatest things I have missed over the last 4 years - not being able to share in person and have hugs.

Anyway on to the card - was feeling a little 'christmassed out' (even though my card making is nowhere near finished!) and have been wanting to have a play with some goodies for a little while.

As normal when you want to do something different Mr Mojo decided he didn't want to appear - so I have CASE'd and put my slant on a card I saw on Pinterest earlier this year done by Nikki Spencer - I suppose this is quite a severe colour combo but I like it - although yellow is not normally a colour I use a lot.

I layered the flower (from SU's Bloom With Hope set) to give some depth and coloured with Inktense pencils-  the leaves were cut with an 'emboss and cut' punch and I used another stamp from the same set for the background.
The sentiment stamp is an old one as is the embossing folder I used on the dark grey pearlised card.
This is another card for the 'stash box'.

Challenges -
Inspiration Destination - Anything Goes
ALBC - Anything Goes NOT Christmas!
Crafty Sentiment - Anything Goes
Cards Galore Encore - Anything Goes
Fantastic Tuesday - Anything Goes - twist embossing

I think Winter has arrived here in my part of the world - it really is cold and the fields at the back of the barn are already white with frost. Perfect excuse to try and find Mr Mojo in the craft room I think! Thanks for visiting. x