Guest Designer at CAS Mix Up!

Super excited to have been invited to be the Guest Designer over at CAS Mix Up this month after winning the November challenge, although I did have to think a bit as the technique is one I haven't done for a long time!

But as I started to do my Bokeh background I wondered why I had hadn't done these backgrounds on more things!
Bokeh is a simple technique really - so there is no excuse for me not doing it more often! And you can use a variety of mediums to create the effect.

I used Distress Inks in shades of Cracked Pistachio, Mermaid Lagoon and Stormy Sky for my background and a White pigment ink for the circles.

Originally I was going to make my own circle stencil but then I remembered I had this one by Inkylicious called 'Bubbles'.

I had no idea what I was going to do until I finished the background and then the card just came together.

The colours which are amongst my fave DI's just reminded me of the sea so Miss Mermaid seemed to be appropriate!
She is from a freebie stamp set which I have had for ages and never used.

I stamped her sat on her rocks twice onto white card and fussy cut. I had to extend the rocks as they weren't big enough to cover the whole of the card base!
I coloured her with the same Distress Inks mixed with a bit of Golden Malachite and Tropic Blue Cosmic Shimmer Powders - her tail is lovely and shimmery! 

Popped her rock seat on small foam pads, slid the background in behind then sat her back on top.
Finished off with a couple of Dew Drops and a sentiment from the same set which I rather liked.

There it is - my GD card - Bokeh, Stamping and my choice was watercolouring!
There are plenty of Bokeh tutorials on You Tube if you've never tried it - and it would be lovely if you could join in - you can see some wonderful examples from the talented lot on the Mix Up DT over on the blog.
Happy Crafting and Happy New Year!x

Santa has been!

Happy Day after Christmas!
I hope everyone had a lovely Christmas Day - I did - lots of lovely crafty stash from hubby... who proved that whilst I was muttering about  'Mmmmm that's a nice stamp - would really like it '  he was listening!
So I plan to spend the next couple of days playing about with the new stuff - be rude not to show how much I am enjoying the presents now wouldn't it???😊😊
Unsurprisingly though, today I am going to share a card made for sending next year - another one inspired by a Pinterest trawl.
(I actually don't know how many hours I spend looking at other peoples stuff instead of making myself!)

This card all made with little snippets of card laying about from the big Christmas card make, .

Have now had a BIG clean up on the desk and I was surprised to actually SEE the craft mat - been a long time since I have made it's acquaintance!

Used a 'snow' embossing folder on the card base and die cut 2 small circles.
On the smaller circle I brushed over some Peeled Paint DI then had a little bit of splattering fun with Festive Berries DO.

The holly flourish die I have had for a while, and the larger holly leaves and berries was a purchase earlier this year. Both again cut from tiny bits of card. The larger die cuts out the leaves and berries separately - trying to find 3 tiny berry circles amongst all the mess on the desk was fun (not 😕)

After painting all the die cuts I used some Glossy Accents on the all berries and sprinkled a little glamour dust onto the berry trio.
The sentiment was coloured with Festive Berries and also given a dose of glossy accents.

Am paying a visit into the Playground - (hoping that there's some Mince Pies left), although I will have to be well wrapped up as I am still suffering with that nasty cough!


Enjoy the rest of the Festive holidays everyone! x

Santa is on his way

I love this Santa stamp!
Sadly he doesn;t belong to me so when I got an opportunity last year to steal him for an hour from a crafting buddy I stamped him rather a lot.... brought lots of him home.... and promptly forgot about him. 😧😧

So there I was putting away the Christmas stash for another year and he was there looking at me from the drawer.
He was still smiling so maybe he isn't too annoyed - and hopefully he will still come and visit me in a couple of days.

Coloured him lightly and popped him behind a die cut frame then added a few holly bough die cuts.

Gave him a bit of sparkle and finished card - unfortunately he will have to go back in the drawer now till next year!!

I have been quite poorly this week with what I can only describe as what started off as a cold but quickly developed into the worst cough in the universe. 😷
I ventured out to do some food shopping on Thursday and it only served to make me worse. I have been indoors ever since.
I am hoping that by Monday I at least start to feel a bit better - otherwise it will be Christmas Day in my PJ's on the sofa wrapped in a blanket feeling very sorry for myself!

If this is your last visit to me before the Big Day, I wish you all a happy Christmas surrounded by those you love. xx

Joining in at
MMM - CAS Christmas
Use Your Stuff - Christmas
LRW - All things Christmas
Dies R Us - Christmas
TIOT -  Santa

Mid Month at Stamping Sensations

Not long to go before 25th and it is time for our mid month reminder at Stamping Sensations. If you're needing last minute reasonably quick cards here's one! Our theme is 'GLITTER AND SPARKLE'.

I am STILL trying to use up the coloured card mountain - barely a dent sadly..... but I AM trying!

Navy blue card this time -

Stamped and embossed the snowflakes then die cut the oval aperture.
Took a scrap of glitter card and die cut a smaller oval, then put it on small foam pads behind the big oval.
I stamped and embossed the tree on the base card then simply layered it all up.
Added a teeny sparkly at the top of the tree and job done! Quite pleased as it looks very effective and didn't take long to do.

Be Creative are our sponsors this month so make sure your entry has stamping as the focal point to be in with a chance to win, pop over and link up and good luck!

Last Minute cards

I for the first time in a long time am not panicking that I haven't made enough cards!
I am just using up stuff out on my desk and have made another for next year's stash.

This was seriously one of the quickest cards EVER!

A couple of (very) old tree stamps stamped and heat embossed onto a scrap of linen card.

Some Stormy Sky DI and a penny to create the sky!

A sentiment stamped inked in Versafine Majestic Blue.
Some Stckles sparingly used for a teeny shimmer of snowdust
All layered onto a base card and done!

Joining in over at
Allsorts - Trees
HIMCR - Keep It Simple with Xmas
HLS CAS - CAS Emboss
Fashionable Stamping - Winter

Well the snow I was looking forward to didn't materialise at all - so contented myself with making snowy scenes instead!
Hope all is well in your part of blogland and thanks for stopping by. x

Is the snow coming?

We may have a light dusting of snow at the weekend.... it probably won't last but I confess to liking to look out at the snow covered fields!
So my share is a card featuring snowflakes today (in anticipation!😀😀)

I have had this snowflake background stamp for several years. I have no idea of the manufacturer as it is another I removed from the wood block as my stamp collection grew and I needed more storage space!

The stamp is only about 3" x 2" so I had to randomly stamp a couple of times to cover the card front then heat embossed in white.

I brushed over Tumbled Glass DI and then 'polished' the card front with a paper towel to remove any excess ink from the top of the snowflakes.

I cut the card with a wavy stitched die then mounted it onto base card.

The snowflake was cut from some left over blue sparkly paper which matches the DI and I added a blue pearl in the centre. Finished by stamping the sentiment and heat embossing onto a scrap of vellum.

Joining in at
Cute Card Thursday - Embossing
Back 2 Basics - Resist technique
C@SS - Anything Christmas
HTSB - Tic/Tac/Toe (Snow, Blue, Emboss)
City Crafter - Snowflakes
CAS Mix Up -Emboss Resist/Stamping/Die cutting

And armed with my little bits of leftovers I am popping over to the Playground to see Miss Di, Parsnip and the gummy fur ball Dudley (he's losing his baby teeth!) - he's been the doggy parlour too so he smells nice!
Hope you are all safe and warm in your part of blogland and thanks for visiting. x

Poinsettia and Pixie Powders

It's a horrible day here! The wind is howling so a perfect day to sit in the craftie space - like I needed an excuse.
This card was inspired by a lady called Holly Brown who made several cards like this in different colours.
I have much neglected the Pixie Powders and the Brushos of late in my desire to make quick  CAS cards but to be honest, this card was really just as quick as many of the others I have made.

I have the Powders and Brushos still out on the desk so am going to do a few more in different colours and then do some for Birthdays instead of Christmas using different flowers. 

I only have 3 Poinsettia stamps. One is for layering/die cutting and not suitable and the other is a PB Watercolour one - again no good for this!
This one is from PB's Wonder Collection and was a challenge win some time ago! I teamed it up with a Holly stamp from Woodware's 'Christmas Greenery' set.

Stamped, embossed then masked the Poinsettia then stamped and embossed the holly.
I used 'Midnight Blue' Pixie Powder on watercolour card.
I am still perfecting using powders -but think this one turned out OK, although I usually am too heavy handed when sprinkling the powder.
The sentiment stamping was a disaster hence the addition! 

Sharing over at
Alphabet - S for Seasons Greetings
Just add Ink - 'I'nky Techniques
Allsorts - Christmas Flowers
Beccy's Place - December
The Flower Challenge - Use an Older stamp

Thanks for looking and I appreciate any comments you leave.
Hope you are warm and dry in your part of blogland! x

Stars

Doing some more Christmas cards as although I think I have enough for myself this year, I decided that it wouldn't do any harm to keep making whilst I have all the Christmas stash out - (any excuse not to tidy up this mess of a craft room  😛😛)

Finished this one today for the challenge over at CAS Christmas which (would you believe) is Stars!
OK so there's only ONE star on here but it IS a very sparkly one!

This was a CASE of one I made last year - and the year before- and probably the year before that!  I like the simple design and the bonus is it doesn't take very long.

Used the 'Snow' embossing folder on an odd piece of card and layered it onto mirri card (which as we all know is an absolute PIG to photograph)
The branch and the star simply cut from glitter card. A little bit of red cord wrapped round the branch and stuck to the star.

Finished with a Penny Black sentiment inked in Silver metallic ink.

Also sharing over at
Country View Challenges - Christmas


The weather here has been very wet and the forecast is for dry but very cold. Can cope tih cold but I hate wet! So maybe I might go for a walk tomorrow to blow away the cobwebs..... and not have to tidy the craft room! Have a great day whatever you're doing and thanks for visiting! x

Stamping Sensations December Challenge

The brand new challenge at Stamping Sensations this month is 'GLITTER AND SPARKLE'!

Be Creative are our sponsors this month so make sure your entry has stamping as the focal point to be in with a chance to win!
I have used their embossing powders on this card.

I had a bit of a brainstorm with this - halfway through I was thinking why oh why did I use vellum?!!
Seemed like a good idea before I started......

Vellum on a white base card.
Stamps used are 'Twiggy Trees' by Inkylicious.
Embossed 6 in silver and one smaller one in gold.

Stamped the sentiment in Smokey Grey Versafine ink and clear embossed.

Added lots of stickles drops to the sky.

Overall am quite pleased with the way it turned out - It IS really sparkly in real life and didn't take too long to do, although I had to use a sticky sheet specifically for vellum to attach to the card in an attempt to get it to lay flat as the vellum had warped a little with the heat gun!

Please go over to the blog and see what my teamies have done too - we love visitors!

Have a great day whatever you're doing. x
Linking up at -
PB& More -  Trad Xmas Colours (Gold and Silver)
Crazy4Challenges - Tree
CAS on Friday - Christmas
Fussy & Fancy - Winter/Christmas
Back 2 Basics - Stamping on Vellum
That's Crafty - Winter Wonderland

Crafty time!

I am doing a little happy dance as although I have a few things to do this week, most are in the house so I can pop in and out of the craftie space and make messy to my hearts content and up to now next week is the same too!
Spent yesterday finishing a baby card (can't show yet!), and writing some of my Christmas cards - (that's a bit of a fib really - I print labels and just add a couple of kisses if the recipient warrants it! But I DO write the envelopes!)
So here's another Christmas card from me today to share

I love Pink.... bet you didn't know that did you??😄😄
For some reason I like to make Pink Christmas cards and here's another.
A few snippets used here so am away to the Playground to check out what has been going on!

The trees are silver embossed and the pink is of course Spun Sugar DI.

I had some silver pearlised card left over from another card so die cut two snowflakes and layered them together.

The silver ribbon was used on a card I received last year - there wasn't a lot of it but I managed to make it stretch just enough!

The sentiment was stamped in Silver ink and a sparkly gem added to the middle of the snowflakes.

The pic quality is really poor - but then so is the light here at the mo!
Joining in at
Crazy 4 CAS - Fave colour (Pink!)
MMM - Non Trad Christmas colour
TIOT - Winter Wonderland
Beccy's Place - X for Xmas

Thanks for visiting today - hope all is well in your part of blogland. xx

Brrr......!!

My goodness it has gone cold here! We even had a few sleety snowflakey things drop for 10 minutes or so a little earlier. Didn't amount to much but it is definitely a sign that Winter is here.
So I have a wintry scene card to share -

Just got out the inks and a scrap circle lying on the desk was put to good use as it made me a big moon mask!
I used Mermaid Lagoon and Cracked Pistachio for the background. This is one of my fave colour combos when using inks and I wasn't sure if it would give me the cold effect I wanted but I think it's not too bad.

The trees were a mixture of stamps, all white embossed and the reindeer was done the same.
I added a little bit of Stickles along the base of the trees and on little deer's feet (doesn't show very well in the pic!)

The sentiment is from SU and sadly I didn't manage a crisp impression and you can just see a little bit of powder round some of it - but think that it proves that is is hand made as it's not perfect! (My excuse anyway!)

Linking up at -
Holly and Ivy - A/Christmas
SSS Wednesday - Baby It's Cold Outside
Ally's Angels - Winter
Fab n Funky - Christmas


Thanks for coming along to visit me. Hope all is well in your part of blogland. x

November Mid Month reminder

It's the middle of November and time for a little reminder about our challenge this month at Stamping Sensations.
We are 'GETTING READY FOR CHRISTMAS' (as if we needed reminding that it's almost upon us!!)

I have made a card which is similar to one that I posted a couple of weeks back in a different colour combo - (it's HERE if you want a peek)- I can take no credit for the idea (acknowledgement is on the other post)  but hope that it will inspire you to make something and join in with us this month.

This really IS a CAS Card and I made several of these in different colours using coloured cardstock.
The inked panel is not difficult to make - just watercolour card stamped and some distress ink used to colour the background. I used Versafine Majestic Blue for the trees and Chipped Sapphire for the background.

As with the other one, I used some liquid pearls and glam dust to imitate snow falling- it really does sparkle!

Hope you will join us - to be in with a chance of winning a great prize from SWEDISH HOUSE CRAFTS simply link up your creation with your stamping as the focal point.
And if you're all 'Christmassed Out' and are still needing some inspiration my teamies have lots of lovely cards to give you some ideas! 

Linking up at
Allsorts - CAS Christmas
MTTC - Let it Snow
Sweet Stampin - Sparkle and Glitz
CMHCD #319 - Blues

More Christmas!

Got on and made a couple more cards of the same design, using up some scraps on the way. Have done this card in a couple of different colours and will share more later.

My favourite linen textured card was used for all the pieces.

I started by stamping the trees on the panel using Olive Archival Ink.

The stamp is old and at some point I've taken it off the wood backing so have no idea which company but they may be Hero Arts?

I then dusted some Peeled Paint and Mowed Lawn over the tree line and stamped the sentiment in the same Olive ink.
The circle is coloured with Festive Berries and simply glued over the panel. 
A Holly die inked and stuck on, some cord and a few pearls and done.

I am sharing this make over at  Double Trouble -  Challenge 14. 
This is the first time I have seen this challenge and was intrigued by it!
Surprisingly I have managed to do all 3 things with this card - create a Christmas project, use the Tic Tac Toe board for TSOT (link below) and also have an optional twist of 'something hanging'.

Also joining in at
TSOT - Red/Trees/Circle
ABC Christmas - W-wishes/X-Xmas
A2S+M - Holiday
C/mas at Sweet Stampin - Christmas
Holly + Ivy - Christmas


An acknowledgement of inspiration is needed to Pinterest and Birgit for the concept behind this card. We have a lovely day here - blue skies and really mild for this time of the year. I hope the sun is shining where you are and thanks for looking!.x

Poppies

A simple CAS card on this Remembrance Day.

 

White Linen card base, some snippets of the same card to create the layers.

Prim Poppy die, (more snippets) and the negative image used to sponge the shadow on the smallest layer.

Poppy coloured with Distress Inks then the heads covered in Glossy Accents.

A few black shiny faceted gems and a simple sentiment.

Allsorts - Poppies/Red
Snippets Playground #339

Embossing - CAS Mix Up November.

Things are settling down a little here and am managing to find some time to get round all the challenges I have missed! Although I am struggling for ideas - think it's because I have had so many other things whizzing round in my head -  I really wanted to have a first go at the CAS MIX UP challenge which this month is Embossing.

I vaguely remembered doing something with an embossing folder called the Belleek method some time back and being happy with the way it tuned out so after a quick internet search I found some inspiration on Jennifer's blog. (Thank you Jen)

I  made several cards using the same embossing folder and different coloured ink. And they used up some scraps of card in the process!

The first card used SU Daffodil Delight ink.
Turned out a little darker than expected but am quite OK with it - after all you need a bit of sunshine if you're not well don't you?

Following Jennifer's tip I inked over the embossed panel with Versamark and then dusted some Cosmic Shimmer over raised bits. I was really pleased with the result - although it doesn't show up a lot in the pic! A gorgeous subtle sheen.

The second card was a lot less intense and I thought a little disappointing although it DOES look better in real life than it does in the pic.
You can't really see the background colour (Versacolour Petal Pink) here but it is a very pretty pale shade. (And anyway it's another just to have on hand in case I need to send one in a hurry!)

I used a larger frame for this panel as there was very little impact with the soft colour scheme. Every cloud etc though as maybe this can be just a general 'all purpose' note card?

Happy though to be back in the craftie space even though Mojo doesn't want to be here with me!

Thanks for looking and thank you for any comments you leave - I appreciate them all. x

Stamping Sensations November Challenge

Hard to believe we are into November already! So as Christmas isn't that far away - our challenge this month at STAMPING SENSATIONS is ' Get Ready For Christmas'
 I actually enjoy making Christmas Cards so this one was a little pleasure for me - and quick and easy.

Oh and feeling rather proud of myself as it's one layer too!
Made a mask for the 'hills'  and the moon then sponged on some Shaded Lilac distress ink.

Stamped the trees randomly in Versafine then removed the mask once the ink was dry.
Then had the tricky bit of just embossing the top without coming down past the tree line....... managed it - JUST!

Some Hickory Smoke oxide used to create the snow drifts and finished with my little pair of reindeer.
No sentiment on the outside as I just liked it the way it is when I'd done!

Hope you will come over and join us this month - SWEDISH HOUSE CRAFTS are our wonderful sponsor and there's some goodies up for grabs!  Just remember - we're a STAMPING challenge and stamping has to be the focal point of your entry!
There's lots of lovely Christmas makes done by my teamies this month too - and they would appreciate a visit.

I am away today at a Presentation Lunch and it's rather a long way away - I am hoping I'll be back tonight in time to catch up with everyone!x
Sharing over at
613 Ave Create - Winter
A2CAS - One layer
Creative Knockouts - CAS

Hello Birdie

I am busy making Christmas cards. The desk is a mess! Lots of embossing powders, stamps, dies and odd bits of card lying round now - promised myself I will tidy.... tomorrow....
Used up some of the odd bits on this card

I made one similar to this a long time ago and the desk scrap pile reminded me of it so a re-make!
I cut a piece out of the bottom of the base card using a 'new to me' die. Wanted some fancy stitched dies for a while and bought a set of curvy edges made by Creative Dies.
Ran a piece of red card through the 'crimper' and stuck underneath. The strip of gingham ribbon hides the join on the other side!
 

Punched out lots of leaves from a bit of green card and assembled them into a circle before putting onto the ribbon.
Added a black beak and a black beady eye to birdie and positioned him amongst the leaves. I thought it might make him look a bit sinister but he's rather sweet!
Finished with a bit of string suitably distressed with Vintage Photo ink, a red button and another tiny scrap of ribbon.

The sentiment is stamped in Versafine Crimson Red.
Thanks for having a look.
We've had a couple of lovely days weather but now I am sat here listening to the rain battering on the window! Hope you're tucked up safe and warm! x

Popping over to
Crimbo Crackers - A/Goes
Dies R Us - Stitched Dies
4 Crafty Chicks - Christmas
Craft Rocket - Christmas is Coming
Die Cuttin Divas - A/Goes
Holly and Ivy - A/Christmas
Beccys Place - Letter B

Winter Blues!

Came back from a short break staying with some friends at their wonderful place in Italy - from lovely warm weather to frost and cold! Skies here though are as blue today as they were when we were in the warm sunshine so we are off out for a wander round a local Artisan Market.

My share for today is not Christmas or Autumn themed either but a card made for a friend who is not into frilly or fancy.

I used basic white linen card for my base and stamped the Altenew Rose direct onto the card then silver embossed.

Brush inked the bottom with some Tumbled Glass DI.
I stamped/embossed the Altenew Rose again onto an off cut of the linen card and fussy cut the leaves and the flower head, then added some glamour dust.

Popped them all up on foam pads for extra dimension.
Rather pleased with how it turned out as it really is sparkly in real life without being too over the top!

Embossed the sentiment and added a few little sparklies.
Job Done!

I am sharing over at
Pixies Snippets Playground
Daring Cardmakers - Glitter
LIM - Dimension
Allsorts - Pearls/Gems
Creative Knockouts - Embossing

Thanks for looking - shall be round to visit you all later today. Hope all is well in your part of blogland. x
 

Mid Month reminder!

It's mid month time and here's a little reminder from me of our challenge of 'AUTUMN COLOURS' at Stamping Sensations.

We have the wonderful STAMP ADDICTS as our sponsor this month - we are very lucky to have such great sponsors of all our challenges and if you want to be in with a chance of winning then please follow our rules which are shown on the blog.
We are a stamping challenge and stamping HAS to be the focal point of your entry.

I needed a Thank you card in a hurry so this is what I came up with.

Really quick with a masked off inky background and some copper embossed leaves.

Matted onto dark brown before popping onto the base card.

Was a little unhappy that the sentiment stamp was not as crisp as I would have liked but couldn't fiddle about doing another sentiment to put on top - the card was in the envelope before the ink was dry I think!!😉

If you've not yet joined this months challenge, there's still time!

Pink

Another Christmas/Winter themed card to share today.

I am trying very hard to use up my coloured cardstock - in reality I am never going to even make a dent in it, but like to kid myself that I am being very good 😇and I am making inroads into the paper mountain.
I have rather a lot of pearlised card in pastel shades.   Hardly Used.    Ever.
Took a pink piece out and was going to make a baby card.    Ended up with this.

No excuses except
1. The stamp was out on the desk as I had used it for something else
and
2. I was inspired by a card seen some years ago on the talented Birgit's blog

This has to go down as one of the quickest cards I have made.
Stamped then embossed the trees in Silver EP onto watercolour card. The stamp is actually quite a big one so I cut off a bit from the top.
I used Victorian Velvet DI as it was the nearest pink shade to the base card and whilst waiting for it to dry I stamped the sentiment (From SU) and silver embossed.
When my watercolour panel was dry, I dotted some sparkly stuff all over it then attached it to the base card. Finished!
I've left the stamp out on the desk. I've left the pearlised card out on the desk too. Might as well batch make a load for Christmas in different shades - I can carry on believeing in that one day I will get to the bottom of the paper pile😏😉!
Linking up to
Allsorts - Christmas
CASual Fridays - Pink and Grey (second entry)
52CCT - Silver (hoping there is enough silver on this card!)
Mono Magic - Pink
Creations in Pink - A/Goes
MLCC- A/Christmas
Jingle Belles - Deck the Halls in Pink

We are off to warmer climes tomorrow😎😎 for a short break to stay with some friends. Have a great week and will catch up with you all when I come back! x

Winter

After a glorious sunny day on Wednesday where I was able to walk out in a T shirt, I have been out today in boots and a heavy coat (with a hood!) What a change in the weather! The strong winds turned over all the patio pots and the lashing rain hasn't ceased since last night, so it seems that the 'Indian Summer' may well be gone and Winter is on it's way.

I have leaned towards CAS cards for a long time now - there's something about creating something with minimum embellishments that I like!

Inspired by Pinterest, I inked a background using Tumbled Glass, Spun Sugar and Hickory Smoke.

I don't have many branch stamps - something I intend to rectify as soon as I can! 😉😉 So I used an Inkylicious branches stamp and did some primary and secondary stamping in Black and Smokey Grey.
Then stamped again and heat embossed in white.

I thought the bottom of the card looked a little bare so took the edge of a crackle stamp, inked it with smokey grey and secondary stamped.
The sentiment is from another Inkylicious set.

This didn't take me long so will likely make a few more as no doubt I will be panicking near Christmas and needing some quick cards!

I am about to travel down one of my "favorite" 😟😟 motorways as I have 2 Presentations to attend over this weekend. Keeping fingers crossed that the strength of this wind drops a little and I have an untroubled journey.

Thanks for looking.
Hope you all are safe and sound wherever you are. x 

Sharing over at
CASual Fridays - Pinks and Greys
AULI - CAS
CRAFT - Christmas
Xmas at Sweet Stampin - Anything Christmas
Holly and Ivy - Anything Christmas

CAS x 2

A card for 2 challenges -
CAS Watercolour  is 2 years old! Hard to believe it's been that long since the challenge started but Happy Birthday! Their challenge this month is a colour one chosen by Bonnie - Orange/Green and Brown

and the lovely Mac is hosting the CAS Mix Up challenge - and the elements for that are Metal/Stamping/Your Own Choice. (So mine was Embossing!)  This card was never intended to fit the 2 challenges but I think it contains all the elements!

The leaves were cut using blue metal dies so maybe Marianne Dies? Anyway, I cut them out using some leftover watercolour card then coloured them with water soluble wax pastels, using the 3 colours that Bonnie stipulated in varying degrees of depth.

Another leftover piece used for the wood embossed background which I attached to the base card.
I used Brushed Corduroy Distress Ink for the sentiment which is from SU and cut out with a stitched die.
So CAS Watercolour sorted!   When I'd finished though I felt the card was lacking something but didn't know what.

Then I remembered some gold wire which I had - after spending 20 minutes on my hands and knees under the desk I emerged clutching the wire - which I remember saving and thinking it would come in useful.... have no idea where it came from.
I just added it around the sentiment and curled it round the top leaf  - am hoping that wire counts as metal but if it doesn't am sure someone will tell me!

Daisy Chain - Autumn/Fall
House of Cards - Autumn Colours
Use Your Stuff - Autumn
Crazy for Cas - Fall (in Love)

We've had some lovely weather today and same is forecast for tomorrow so we may get a day out and about to enjoy the sunshine! Hope the sun is shining where you are too. x

Stamping Sensations October Challenge

This month our challenge is 'AUTUMN COLOURS' at Stamping Sensations.
I love Autumn - love sunshine and warm summer days too - but the colours of Autumn are often spectacular and I love to drive along looking at the changing colours of the trees.

So it will come as no surprise that I chose to use a tree stamp!
It is from Stampendous and is another of my rarely used ones.
I stamped it onto watercolour card using Coffee Ranger Archival Ink.
Out with the Distress Inks - Fired Brick, Spiced Marmalade, Fossilized Amber, Peeled Paint.

The stamp is a large one and I thought about a sentiment on the front but decided against it - I remembered that I had these leaf buttons from years ago - took me longer to find them than it did to make the darn card! Found eventually and attached with a little bit of string.

We have the wonderful STAMP ADDICTS as our sponsor this month - we are very lucky to have such great sponsors of all our challenges and if you want to be in with a chance of winning then please follow our rules which are shown on the blog.
We are a stamping challenge and stamping HAS to be the focal point of your entry.

Hope you can find the time to join us - and please take a look at some of the DT's creations - they love visitors!


I am linking up at -
PB&M - Autumn Splendour
Allsorts - Trees/Leaves
Crafty Calendar - Autumn
Alphabet - N for Nature
Daring Cardmakers - October Elemental Inspiration Pic

Holly and Ivy

I took a pic of this card that i finished yesterday and intended to save it for a later post but onto my reading list has just popped up the brand new challenge over at CAS Christmas which has the theme of Birds!
Now I know Halloween is approaching but to have a challenge theme for a card I literally just finished is - well - a little bit spooky!!

This card was just made to go into my stash for me to send at Christmas and has used up a few odd bits of watercolour card.

Simple brick embossed background, a couple of dies and a stamp! Oh and a leftover piece of vellum too!

The stamp was a freebie which has never been used, coloured with watercolours and fussy cut.
Both ivy and holly dies also watercoloured and I added a bit  of Red Nuvo drops to the holly (not sure they look  like berries but you get the idea!) and a little bit of white embossing powder to the ivy leaves.

The sentiment stamp is an old wood backed one, part of a set of  Papermania Christmas sentiment stamps I bought when I embarked on my card making a long time ago. I used Olympia Green Versafine ink then clear embossed.

Didn't take too long to make and is reasonably flat so will be OK to post too!
Popping over to
Pixies Playground
HLS CAS Christmas - Vellum
ABC Christmas - U for Upon and V for Very Quick
THAIC - A/Goes
Addicted to Stamps - Christmas comes early

Back to the inky mess on the craft desk - think I need to clear up a bit! Thanks for calling in. x

A week gone...

So much for me having time to come and idle away in blogland!
A week has gone by since I last posted, although I have found time to do a few things at home.
I made lots of mess 😁😁 with Pixie Powders and Brushos on watercolour card and have made a couple of cards with some of the backgrounds.

We are currently enjoying a lovely spell of warm weather and I am loving watch the trees change colour.
This inspired this card really -
A variety of dies used on one of my inky backgrounds and they have a lovely glimmer to them in real life.
The paper behind the circle die is stamped in Vintage Sepia and the stamp is Hardwood from SU.

The sentiment is from Inkylicious, heat embossed in Copper onto a scrap of vellum and slipped behind the circle cut out.
A few Antique Copper Pixie Powder splashes onto the plain white card and a little brushing with Tea Dye round the edges and done.

Lots of Autumn themed challenges about -
Allsorts - Autumn Glory
Creative Moments - Autumn colours
Die Cutting Divas - Fall colours
Alphabet - N for Nature
Crafty Gals Corner - A/Fall
4 Crafty Chicks - Happy Fall Y'all
MAWTT - Fall colours

I hope the sun is shining wherever you are and as always, thanks for popping in to visit - I really appreciate you all. x

In at the Last Minute!

It has been so long since I managed to join Loll and Co over at CAS Mix Up and I literally have made it this month at the last gasp as the challenge closes on 24th!

The challenge this month is to use markers on your stamps as well as Stamping and your choice. So I have chosen die cutting as my third choice.
The stamp I used is one of my 'Go To' every year at Christmas. Its Penny Black 'Poinsettia and Pine' and is one of the very few wood backed stamps that I still own.

I used Distress Markers in Festive Berries, Pine Needles and a tiny bit of Blueprint Sketch. I had several attempts at spritzing and stamping but none of them I was happy with so eventually after another failed attempt I didn't even dry the stamp, just inked over it and stamped!

Some Gold Liquid Pearls in the centre with a dusting of  yellow fine glitter  and another PB stamp inked in Festive Berries for the sentiment.

The watercolour card and the layer behind were die cut from odd bits so am paying a long awaited visit to the Playground too.

If you follow me on Facebook, you will know that it has been a different kind of day for me today - sadly, we had one of our Internationals diagnosed with a acute myeloid leukemia earlier this year and she hasn't left hospital since - she is just 29 years old.
So in aid of a good cause we decided to recreate 'Calendar Girls' (and boys!!) with a bowls theme and today was my day to 'bare all' for the photo shoot! Boy was it cold!
The pic has turned out really well and although I was very apprehensive (as were the others) we have come away feeling rather proud of ourselves and happy that we are raising money for a worthwhile cause!  https://fundraise.cancerresearchuk.org/page/hot-shots-of-bowls

Enjoy the rest of your weekend whatever you're doing! x

England and Wales

Been a little while since the last blog post - I had my final two celebration matches in the middle of last week then a couple of days spent with some friends, before travelling on to South Wales - where I had a lovely (if occasionally damp) weekend with our talented Under 18's squad who played against Wales U18 in their annual test series.
Am home now for a couple of weeks  - an odd day where I am needed here and there but am hoping to get back into a proper routine as the winter approaches!
I did a quick stock take of my stash and found that I was quite low on a couple of different themes - New Homes, Thank You and Condolences/Sympathy. I intend to out that right over the next week or so (then I suppose I should make attempts at Christmas??)

I had inked this background panel (without the black bottom) some time ago for a 'fairy' card but it just got left!

The poppy stamp was the result of a little Inkylicious  spendie some months ago and never inked.

Once I'd stamped it, I didn't like the bottom stems just lying there on top of a salmony pink sky so used some Black Soot DI and made the bottom black.

The sentiment stamp I think was a freebie.

Matted onto black card before layering onto a white base and done.

I made a few sympathy cards yesterday and will share as we go along. They are the kind we hope we never have to send but inevitably there are occasions when we need them.

I hope you are all happy in your own part of blogland - am taking dear husband to the dentist but once back this afternoon I will come and visit for a catch up! x

Joining in at
CGCC - A/Goes
Flower Challenge - A/Goes
Creative Crafters - A/Goes
CFTH - A/Goes
Crafts Galore Encore - A/Goes

At Last!!

I am back in my craftie space! I have missed it sooo much these last months and it took ages for me to settle down to do anything - isn't it horrible when you have looked forward to something then when you actually have it within reach you can't seem to think of anything to do??
So I have been like that since Monday - (once I cleared all the dust off everything) - but today I finally made something -

with the help of Pinterest of course - better than nothing at all I think!

Had a bit of bother with the light taking the pic too.

I white embossed the flower (a small stamp from Altenew called You Make me Happy) onto watercolour card then coloured them with Distress Inks.
I used a pale blue water-soluble wax pastel for the background.

Finished it off with a teeny blob of Gold Liquid Pearls on the flower stamens.

Was a little disappointed with the sentiment - it was a small set from Kaisercraft and despite using Versafine ink and my Misti, it smudged a little.
But dear husband said it looked Ok so I resisted adding a new sentiment on another piece of card over the top of the smudged one.

It's been forever since I joined in with a challenge so am linking up to

Crafting By Designs- A/Goes
Sist. of Crafters - Flowers
SOS - Crazy for colouring
Flower Challenge - A/Goes


Thanks for visiting - am now able to sit here and call round and see what you have been up to!
Hope all is well in your part of blogland too! x

Stamping Sensations September Challenge

September already!
Here's my card for our September challenge at Stamping Sensations where we have a theme of 'Something beginning with 'B'.
Lovely Bee Crafty is our sponsor  -

I have a few 'B's on my card! Beach, birds, bark, a (life) Buoy and Birthday!

I have had this stamp for a long time - bought as a pre loved one and this is the first time I have inked it. It's rubber as opposed to my fave clear ones so always panic about positioning - particularly as there is no wood backing to even help line it up in the correct place!The MISTI helps but I still panic cos I can't see it!

Stamped it onto the cardstock, stamped again onto a piece of scrap and cut out then masked it off whilst I made the background scene with distress inks and my duster brushes. I have slowly got more confidence doing cards like these and there's something quite therapeutic about making a picture!

The grasses and 'sandhills effect' are from an Inkylicious set I think (no packaging!).
The main image was coloured with DI's too.
A little bit of string to secure the sentiment tag - job done!

Linking up over at
Allsorts- Things with Wings
Crafty Friends - Animales or Birds
ATS&M - Make your Mark
heARTful - A/goes

Inky things

I have scheduled this to post whilst at the National Championships so I hope Mr Blogger behaves himself - I haven't got much free time now until the first week in September but am hoping to be able to get home for an overnight stay when I have 2 days off together so will be round to visit everyone whenever I can!

If the forecasters are correct I am currently enjoying some lovely weather and am hoping that it will last for the entire Championships.

Before I came away I did manage to make a couple of cards.

A poppy die cut from a leftover piece of watercolour card and painted with watercolour paints.
The background was another oddment of watercolour card. Brushed Peeled Paint DI onto the bottom then overstamped with some foliage stamps.

A few red paint splatters and some red Nuvo crystal drops next and finally a die cut sentiment.

Quick card really and hope you like!

Hoping that you too are having sunshine and blue skies and thanks for stopping by. xx

Stamping Sensations - August Challenge

This month at Stamping Sensations we have another great prize - a £25 voucher to spend at RUBBER DANCE.
One of the things about our blog is that we, the DT, get to choose our winners each month by voting for our faves - so there is nothing random about our prizewinners!!
Our challenge is a really hard one for me - USE YOUR CURRENT FAVOURITE STAMP! How can I pick a fave from all those stamps that I possess??😟
As I simply cannot pick a fave (as each time I buy a new one it's my fave for that week- LOL) I decided to use a stamp that shows one of my fave flowers instead!

There is something about Poppies isn't there?

I opted for an orange/black colourway seen on Pinterest instead of the usual poppy red and I think it makes a change.

This stamp set is from Inkylicious inked in Carved Pumpkin and Shabby Shutters onto watercolour card.

The poppies are coloured with Spiced Marmalade and Wild Honey, with the centres spotted with Forest Moss.

I used a bit of Tea Dye, Vintage Photo, Wild Honey and Mustard Seed for the bottom of the panel.

Sentiment was a real cheapie which I have had for a while and use a lot, simply embossed in white.
2 bronze pearls and a finished card!

Please go to the challenge blog and check out the other inspiration from the rest of the DT.  There are not many rules but we are a stamping challenge so stamping has to be the focal point of whatever you create!
I am at the National Championships for the entire month but will catch up with you all when I get a day off -Happy Crafting!

Summer and the mad month ahead

It has been an age since I have been able to find some time to post. I have been busy at British Isles Championships and International series all over the place - the men and women are at different places and times as are the Under 25's!
But the weather was kind (too hot on many occasions) and I have a few days at home before the August madness of the National Championships. A whole month away from my own bed and am hoping that the weather stays dry!

My craft time has been limited to making baubles like they're going out of fashion -(they are really popular and now have mastered the inking and glittering!), catching up with my Design Team inspiration (😏) for the next few months and satisfying my craving to make a few cards for the stash.

Thought this image from All Dressed Up was awesome and I have enjoyed using it!
Background created on watercolour card.
Sky ink duster brushed with Tumbled Glass - I made the 'clouds' template by using scalloped scissors!
The sea was watercoloured in shades of blue and the sand was also watercoloured using Scattered Straw DI. I randomly overstamped with a stamp from Inkylicious

The girl on the deck chair was coloured with Promarkers. On reflection I should have printed her out on watercolour card also instead of the plain white card which necessitated the promarkers rather than my paints.
I coloured her in, cut her out and popped her onto the beach!
The sentiment is a NBUS and I thought it fitted perfectly.

Ironing and packing are the order of the day for tomorrow and then I will be off. I hopefully though will be able to get some internet where I am staying (although it is a little remote - in glorious countryside so I can relax away from the greens).
Thank you for continuing to come and visit and leave me comments - I love hearing from you. x 

Joining in at
ADU July - Anything Goes
Craft Rocket - Summer
MMM - Coloured Image
Sisterhood of Crafters - Summer Vacation
PIP - Summer Days

CAS Mix Up

Happy Wednesday!
I am a little bit like a bus aren't I? Not been around for over a week then 2 posts at once!
(if you've popped over from the Stamping Sensations blog please scroll down to the next post to see the mid month DT card!)

I love Loll's CAS challenges but during my busy summer season it takes me all my time to do my own DT cards and no time left for anything else.... but I did find time this month for the CAS MIX UP which has the challenge of Colouring Die Cuts, Stamping and any other choice. Loll and the rest of the DT are inspiring - they make beautiful cards!

I have had the birdie die cuts for a little while and this just popped into my head.
I sponged the background using Distress Inks and stamped the flower panel. On reflection maybe this would have been more CAS if I'd left the background and just embossed a wood panel? Hope it's CAS enough for the challenge......

The birdies were coloured with Black Soot, Peacock Feathers and Fossilized Amber.
I think maybe I should have coloured him in a brighter colour looking at the pic but in real life he stands out OK!

I had the card all planned out in my head but then ------
The sentiment drove me mad - I had this sentiment on a stamp - could I find it???? 😠😠 Have absolutely no idea where it went. After wasting lots of precious time hunting I gave up and printed it out.

Am linking up with
HLS Dies - A./Goes with Dies
Fashionable Stamping - Use Your Inks
Crafty Sentiments - Add a Sentiment
Dream Valley - All things Bright + Beautiful

I will be AWOL again after today until middle of next week but will catch up with everybody whenever I can. Have a great week/weekend whatever you are doing - me ? I will be once again at an International Series!! (Hoping the sun continues to shine!) x

A Mid Month Reminder!

This is the first time I have been able to join in with our Mid Month reminders at Stamping Sensations (it's also likely to be the last for a couple of months too!).

This was a really quick card to make - and I used one of my fave sentiments stamps - cos it suits me very well!

I used a coloured card base for a change - it's not often I use up any of my coloured card!

The background is DP. I loved it 💗, bought it 😦 and have looked at it for a long long time 😉😉. (Years in fact).
So I steeled myself and used it.😱

Just quick and simple, mounted it onto white card, used the Poppy Border stamp, a couple of dragonflies and the sentiment - all embossed with white EP.
A few blingy bits and a little 'schparklie' on the dragonflies wings and finished.

Our theme this month is 'In My Garden'.
If you haven't joined us yet there's still time and you could win a fab prize from our wonderful sponsor CRAFTY INDIVIDUALS - so what are you waiting for??!!

If you still need some ideas, hop over to the challenge blog and have a look at the DT's mid months too - if you have time, please leave a comment - we love to hear from you!

I am joining in at -
Country View Crafts - In My Garden
CDTOC - A/Goes
CHPP - A/Goes with Patterned Paper
Daisy Chain - Summer

Dreaming of Christmas?

Spare time once again evaded me this week and it does not seem 8 days since my last post!
A share from my 'Drafts' folder today as no card making been done at all this week.
Here is the confession - THIS IS THE ONLY CHRISTMAS CARD I HAVE MADE THIS YEAR!!!!
So no doubt once again I shall be madness itself nearer the time...

I have a collection of these window dies. Like most dies I have bought they are hardly used😔😔.... my crafting seems to go in phases.. Stamps, Dies, Fussy, CAS and I never have quite decided on the one that fits me best.

Behind the window die is the tiniest bit of watercolour card, stamped with some teeny trees and heat embossed.
Was a bit fiddly but eventually managed to get the tree placement right.

The holly die was simply coloured and re-assembled and I added some glossy accents onto the berries and a bit of blingy before adding it to a piece of folded card for the window ledge.
 I used the brick embossing folder for the background as I thought it looked a little 'flat'.
So one made - only another zillion to go!

The weather has been so warm it's hard to think of Christmas and I suppose that I won't think of it again now until November!
Hope the sun is shining where you are and you are not fed up with the sunshine - thanks for popping in today. x
Challenges -
Kitty Bee - Christmas In July
CAS on Friday - Christmas In July
Xmas @ Sweet Stampin - Anything Christmas
Crafters Castle - Christmas in July
CHNC -  Anything Christmas plus a die

Beautiful

Having been at home since the middle of the week I have had some time to relax and enjoy the glorious weather. Although it's been too hot for me at times I have really enjoyed seeing blue skies and sunshine - long may it continue!
Have a share today using one of my Technique Tuesday fave stamps - Cherry Blossom.

I love this stamp. When I was a child we had a huge cherry blossom tree in the garden. I used to climb it!
It was so pretty when it was in flower - but drove my poor Mum to distraction when the blossom started to drop all over the garden!

I stamped onto a small piece of watercolour paper in Abandoned Coral DI then misted the paper and simply splashed about with a watercolour brush.

Added some gold Liquid Pearls and cut out with a stitched rectangles die.
It looked a little 'lost' on the background linen textured card so I cut out a slightly larger rectangle. Used 3d foam pads to raise it up.


Quite happy with this one!

Am popping over to the following challenges -
Crafters Cafe - Keep It Simple
Flower Challenge - Monochrome
CAS on Friday - Splash of Watercolour
Fussy and Fancy - Pretty in Pink
A2S+M - CAS
HLS Watercolour - Anything Goes

Quick update - Miss Di has allowed me to join in at the Playground this time round as I was too late for last challenge last night and too early for the one that started today - she's a nice person our Miss Di - and I promise I won't spray anyone with the hose pipe.....! xx.

Thank you for looking and for leaving any comments. I appreciate it!
Enjoy the weather! x

Stamping Sensations July Challenge

This month at Stamping Sensations we have the wonderful Crafty Individuals as our sponsors.
Our theme is called 'In My Garden' and here is my DT card -
 I really enjoyed making this as it gave me another opportunity to practice my scene constructing!
And it also reminded me of the garden in our last house which was big and pretty! Along with the house I also inherited a huge dovecote - (no doves, just their house!).
Although I didn't have a dovecote stamp, this little bird house evoked memories of my much loved (but very labour intensive) garden.
The bird house stamp is a set of 2 - the second one is much smaller and I have had them for a long time so no idea which company they are from.

Used Stormy Sky, Peeled Paint and Forest Moss for the background with a little touch of Squeezed Lemonade around the sun. Inked the edges of the whole panel with Forest Moss too.

The stamps are a mixture from SU's Wild About Flowers and others from my stash.
The branches are by Inkylicious as are the birds. (I made a bit of a mess of the bird on the house - although I used the Misti, I must have moved the card slightly when stamping for the second time-  but dear husband says it's not too bad as it looks like said birdie is flapping his wings! Don't you love him - forever trying to make me feel better!)

Please have a look at the Challenge Blog and follow our rules before submitting your entry. We are a stamping challenge - and you MUST have a stamp as the FOCAL point of your creation!
If you can find time to visit my teamies and leave them a comment too, that would be really appreciated!
I am linking up at
Dragonfly Dreams - Summer
Sweet Stampin' - Summer Brights
4 Crafty Chicks - Summer is Here
Cardz 4 Galz - Summer Sunny Days

Thanks for visiting. x