Monday 30 November 2015

Winter's butterflies ...

I'm off to a flying start this week - I've already managed to create a card, cut out 25 small hearts, 24 medium hearts, 15 pieces for 5 cushions and pattern pieces for 2 minions!  Now it's time to create a blog post and update my Facebook page before bed!

This is the card:



Never before have I had a sentiment stamp that exactly matched the theme of a challenge but today I have! The current challenge at TIME OUT is to be inspired by the words - "Snowflakes are Winter's butterflies", the exact words I have used!  My original plan was to use some blue and turquoise ink with just a few embossed snowflakes but once I had embossed a couple of snowflakes I decided to keep my design to silver and white.  I cut the stamped panel to add some dimension and interest.

I used:
Uniko  Stunning Snowflakes
Versafine Onyx Black ink
Personal Impressions Silver Dollar Embossing powder
Crafter's Companion Watercolour card

I am entering the following challenges:

TIME OUT #45 - Snowflakes are Winter's Butterflies
UNIKO #27 - Anything Christmas with the optional twist of CAS
Addicted to CAS  #77 - Dimension
AAA Cards #53 Anything Goes

Enjoy!

Sunday 29 November 2015

Textiles not cards ...

My final post for this evening - no card, no stamps and no ink!  This is all about textiles my other favourite pastime.  At this time of the year I create to sell at local craft fairs - very small scale but fun and it gives me an excuse to get my sewing machine out.  It is also a way of justifying all the fabric that seems to find its way into my craft stash!

I like to design and create cushions - last year it was all about Minions and this year seems to be all about hearts and bunting.  These are some of the cushions I've made:







The photographs are not brilliant but hopefully you get the idea!

I also made more Christmas trees - always popular as table decorations.


Enjoy!

Silver and white ...

My second post for the day and my second Christmas card!


The small snowflake has been heat embossed three times to give the appearance metal

Another very CAS card - simple elements with a simple layout.  I used:

Uniko:  Stunning Snowflakes and Pure Florals: Poinsettia
Personal Impressions Silver Dollar embossing powder
Sizzix Snowflake die
Pebeo Gilding wax

I'm entering the following challenges:

Uniko Challenge #27 - Christmas with the optional twist of a CAS creation
AAA Cards #53 Anything Goes

Enjoy!

Holly berries ...

I am so behind with Christmas cards that I have to take every opportunity to create them ... I still haven't found a design that I'm happy with so this year looks like I will be sending an eclectic mix!

I've been using challenges as the starting point for my designs and regular visitors will know that I like to try and enter the weekly "Less is More" challenge.  I was determined to enter the only problem I had was the theme - FRUIT - I had no idea where to start especially as (for me) it had to be Christmas related.  Then I had a 'light bulb' moment - what about holly! Holly has berries and berries are therefore the fruit of holly maybe it would work.  It worked for me and hopefully will work for the designers over at "Less is More".



I began by die cutting a stitch edged rectangle, then stamped the image and sentiment in mossy meadow ink.  I used a gold gel pen to add detail to the leaves and shadow around the sentiment.  The small panel is backed with white fun foam before adhering it to the card base.

I used:
Uniko:  Jingle Bells
Stampin Up:  Peace on Earth sentiment and Mossy Meadow Ink
Distress Ink:  Festive Berries

I will enter the following challenges:

"Less is More" Week 252 Recipe - Fruit
Uniko Challenge #27 - Christmas with the optional twist of a CAS creation.  I'm not sure I could make a card any more CAS!

Enjoy!

Wednesday 18 November 2015

What would Santa say ...

... Ho, Ho, Ho!

Single layer + inlaid die cuts = super speed card!

There is not a great deal that I can say about this card, so I will let it speak for itself ...


Hopefully this photograph shows the red foiled card

This is one of the most difficult cards to photograph, considering the design is so simple but the red foiled card just did not want to be photographed.

I am entering the following challenge:

"Less is More" One Layer Week 250 - SANTA

Enjoy!

Sunday 15 November 2015

Red Poinsettia ...

Today's contribution to the Christmas cards ...




I used:
Distress Inks - Festive Berries, Fired Brick, Pine Needles, Crushed olive and Mowed Lawn
Uniko: Pure Florals, Poinsettia

I'm entering the following challenges:
Penny Black and More, November Challenge - Anything Christmas
Stamping Sensations, November Challenge - Festive Florals and foliage

Enjoy!

Saturday 14 November 2015

Santa's sleigh ...

I received some beautiful new stamps and stencils from STAMPlorations this week and decided to have a go with one of the sets.



I used:
STAMPlorations - Believe in Magic
Versafine Onyx Black
Zig Clean Colour Real Brush Markers
Wink of Stella.

I'm entering the following challenges:
"Less is More" Week 250 One Layer SANTA
Penny Black and More  November challenge - Anything Christmas
STAMPlorations - neverending Anything Goes Challenge using STAMPloration stamps

Enjoy!

Believe ...

Good evening from a wet and windy Oxfordshire ... and it's cold but I guess we should expect that in the middle of November!  As Christmas looms on the horizon it seems fitting that the challenge at "Less is More" is SANTA.  I had a few ideas this is the first but in two colour ways.


Simple cards, simple design, limited resources and one layer!  The boot print stamps I found in my stamp collection I'm not sure where they came from but I suspect they were free with a magazine.  The sentiment was created from Lawn Fawn's Milo alphabet.  I first stamped the elements with versafine ink and then used white embossing powder and heat embossed it, chomped the corners and that was that!

I'm entering the following challenges:

"Less is More" Week 250 One Layer SANTA
Penny Black and More November Challenge - Anything Christmas

Enjoy!

Wednesday 11 November 2015

Thanks again ...

Back again!  This is the second card I made yesterday ... as promised in yesterday's post I re-worked my idea to create a second card using my gelli print.  This time I've added some additional interest by stamping some splatter behind the lettering.  I prefer this version, here it is:-



I stacked the die cut letters to add some dimension and because my fingers get in the way if I try and add small pieces of foam adhesive!

I'm going to enter the following challenges:

"Less is More" # 249 Colour Challenge - FIRE
AAA Cards  # 52 Thanks/Thanksgiving

Enjoy!

Tuesday 10 November 2015

Thanks ...

This post is to say thank you to all my followers and blog visitors.  I've been missing in action for ages ... family demands alongside missing ideas mean that I haven't been able to create any cards or post anything!  I've also been distracted by my sewing machine!  Alongside paper crafting I also love textiles and each year in the Autumn I attend a number of craft fairs and sell gifts for Christmas - most of which are fabric based ... so I need to get creating stock!

I decided I would attempt to create a card this evening for a couple of challenges.  This is it:



I began by creating a gelli print using yellows, orange, red and bronze acrylic paint along with a number of different stencils.  I was really pleased with the print and disappointed with the card - it does look better in real life than it appears in the photograph.  I still think it lacks something so I may be back later with a revised version.  I'm confident that the idea is sound but this card just has too much white space and lacks something ... not sure what ...

I'm going to enter the following challenges:

"Less is More" # 249 Colour Challenge - FIRE
AAA Cards # 52  Thanks/Thanksgiving

I'm going off to see if I can find that "something missing"!

Enjoy!