Happy Christmas

The glitter doesn't photograph well (the reflections makes it look out of focus!).  

In Case you are wondering - using Core'dinations card, some glitter card, and dies are Nesties and Cheery Lynn.  I made loads of variations on this theme, but forgot to take any pictures, until there was only one left!

Happy Christmas, and best wishes for 2013 xx

Autumnal Trees

Over at Less is more, the theme is autumn.  I love the autumnal colours, and as the weather changes, my mind turns more to indoor pursuits like crafting.

I've two cards to share - both using an old SU stamp set, three trees.  I bought mine on ebay from the US - I was looking for a nice stamp of tree trunks - and loved the sentiment that came with this set.  Funnily enough elder daughter spent a year in New Hampshire as part of her university course, and had just returned home when I bought it from someone who was living about 10 miles away from her!

In both, I've stuck to a simple design just using the trees and the sentiment from that set.  The trees are cut on a bit of the same card stuck down with a matt to match the ink - possibly the use of the ribbon makes it slightly outside the scope of less is more! But sometimes, as my youngest daughter would agree, you just need a ribbon and a bow to add that final touch!

I did the same sort of thing in green and blues (because I liked the colours and the sentiment) - one of my friends has a birthday next week, and I'm giving her a stash of cards, some of which could be used for a variety of occasions. 

Photographing my cards reminded me, I've still photos from our holiday and our trip to Cornwall to take youngest daughter to Uni still on my camera - whoops, must do something with them!

LIM - Week 87 - Marriage

I've not made cards for ages... but wanted to make a wedding card for one of my colleagues who's getting married soon.  This fitted in with the Less is More challenge Marriage - I'd also been impressed with  Chrissie's white on white in previous challenges, so I thought I'd give it a go:

Although its white on white, the central nestie cutout is coloured slightly using my SU colour sprizter, a liberal application of misted water and some gold radiant rain, so that the white heart and tags show up better.  The tags were printed on the computer (the ink is a sort of gold colour like some of the spritzed background), and are the couples name and the date.

Been a busy summer with no time for crafting - as of Sept eldest daughter gained an MA and is now working as a trainee teacher, and a daughter who is an art student (this is her first week of classes)... so its been busy.

LIM - Paper Piecing

This week LIM challenge is Paper Piecing. What a great idea to use those scraps!

This fitted in very nicely with the Sizzix kites framelet I'd just bought from ebay for under a fiver! In our house we have an assortment of kites in our loft - my daughter and husband like power kites (well until hubby broke a rib flying his kite).  However, we still occasionally have a family outing with dogs to go fly a kite.

The card blank is a mottled pale blue (7cm x 21cm) - and was something I acquired from a friend of my mum's - its one of those that until now, I've not really known how to make the best of.  I lightly sponged the shape of a couple of clouds, and stuck on the kite with some dimensionals.  The Happy Birthday is also die cut from the same card as the kite.

My daughter (18) was rather taken with the kite, as she raids my stash of cards for her friends, I made a couple more in different colours.  The one below uses an off-cut which is deep pink, the DSP part of 1 sheet of HOTP paper (just cut from different parts).  I'm going to enter this in the CAS-ual Friday Pretty in Pretty in Pink Challenge. 

LIM - One Layer with a flourish

Over at  Less is more this week its a one layer card with a flourish.

I've not got many stamps with a flourish - but do enjoy the challenge of a one layer card.  This is my attempt:

Recipe: Using a nestie as a mask, I've stamped and embossed a flourish from SU Precious Butterflies.  I've sponged in a background in blue and yellow - and lightly misted to give the impression of a summer day.  The sentiment and butterflies are also from SU Precious Butterflies.

I've just had the week off work, back to work Monday and my youngest daughter has exams - so not looking forward to the morning.

Less is more - not a square

This week at less is more the challenge is Not a Square

So being IT literate, I've been trying to make templates using Corel Draw (because although I have a newer copy of photshop, I couldn't make photoshop do what I wanted with vector graphics and shapes).  Anyway to cut a long story short, earlier in the week, I'd been playing with rounded squares.  But what I'd really wanted to try was a star.  I tried a 5 pointed star, and it didn't sit very well, so the next step was a 6 pointed star!

After a lot of scrap sheets of paper then card, and lots of cutting out...then some stamping and clear embossing followed by some sponging (2 blues and a beige), and done!

The words are inkadinkado, my daughter's head teacher uses them for motivational speaches - to encourage the kids to take opportunities and to take that leap of faith and try, and if you do, you will find that you can fly like an eagle.  In today's corporate speak we are encouraged to be 'fearless'!

This picture is to demonstrate that it works as a card, but may be I should stick to the day job (or use a better camera).

One layer Fathers day card

I was trying some bew techniques, and used my computer to print out a card blank with some text, and then I decorated it, to make a Father's day card (just over a week away).

Once I had my card blank, my recipe was:

• using distress inks add a frame to the card in straw and sage
• stamp a few leaves using SU French Foliage in a variety of greens

I thought I'd enter this in to LIM week 69 - not a square - it is almost a square with the corners cut-off (hopefully enough not a square for Mandi and Chrissie).
Now I know what I'm doing - think I'm back to the drawing board (been trying to work out making a star card) - as my daughter has just passed her driving test. Thanks for looking.

Punchy!

This week over at CAS-ual Friday the challenge is Punchy - to use punches, dies etc

Last week, I nipped into my local craft shop (Art of Craft in North Camp), I was looking for a specific memory box die, and they didn't quite have what I was looking for, but I managed to buy some Crafters Workshop templates instead. They were only £2, so worth experimenting with.

I sponged the Crafters Workshop template in shades of blue to make some patterned backgrounds, which I have combined with a punch, an embosslit and a quickcutz die and these are what I came up with:



As I was playing with strips of left over card, it influenced my directions. And yes, the two strips were sponged with one more pastel than the other - not my bad photography, honest. I also have a 6 x 6 sheet of numbers in sponged in yellow and sand which will turn in to a card for my nephew, so maybe I'll post that in the future. I quite like the effect, but maybe want to do something more interesting, with it. However, the weekend's come and gone and I guess that will now have to wait, as its back to work for me tomorrow :-(

CAS-ual Fridays - Birds

Over at CAS-ual Fridays the challenge for this week is birds.

I dusted off my bird punch, and this was my entry:

The bird is cut from DSP using the SU 2 step bird punch, and I have sponged the edges in SU Early Espresso, to add definition.  The swirl is a sizzlit. The sentiment is inkadinkado and the rectangle is Hero arts stamped in Brilliance Pearlescent Sky Blue.  In reality the blue is a lovely sparkly blue, but the photo doesn't really show that, so you'll just have to take my word for it!

My desk is now covered with lots of cut out birds, as I was experimenting with different colours.

Just for fun, I thought I'd show you this one as well. Instead of using DSP, in this one I used some scrap card which was stamped with some text, just to add interest and texture.  The sentiment is a Sizzix phrases medium die.

and finally, thanks for looking and commenting. 

LIM 67 - One layer - take 3 stamps

This week  LIM week 67 is to take 3 stamps.  Using just 3 was hard - two stamps, was easy -but each time I added a third...

My aim was to use the worn rectangular stamp (from Hero Arts) to give the effect of blue skies and come up with something a bit more spring like, but couldn't quite get the right blue - its such much easier to brayer or sponge - but then it wouldn't be three stamps!   And right now I have a card with a gorgeous blue rectangle ready for some other stamping... so maybe later in the week it will fall into place!

However, after using a lot of scrap paper, I came up with something I was reasonable happy with:

The flower and the sentiment are Penny Black - my photo does not do the sentiment justice - it is:


Let us be grateful to the people who make us happy;
they are the charming gardeners who make our soul blossom.
Marcel Proust

We spent yesterday in Somerset with friends, it was such a lovely day, the sun shone and we wandered round Wells and along the river.  This time of year is lovely with such promise.

And an appeal...

I'm a fan of Vicky (aka Crafting Clare) and both Vicky and   Margaret (making papercrafts)  this week mentioned a post by Jo Street To quote Vicky:
I always like to feel that our crafting can help others. I was reading  this post by Jo Street of Dinky Daisy Designs yesterday - she has been devastated by the plight of a little girl at a playgroup her son attends. Jo wants to do something to help so she's holding a sale of cards to raise money for Candlelighters, the organisation which will be caring for the little girl and supporting her stricken family. It seems to me that it's easy to make two cards if you're making one and I think lots of us could spare some from our stash, so do pop over to Jo's blog and offer your services.

So this card, is one of a number I'm sending to Jo, for her card sale, to raise money for Candlelighters.

LIM - Yellow

This week the LIM challenge is yellow - a colour I hardly ever use, and then only as an accent - so it is a challenge.  This is what I came up with:

The sentiment is:
   Keep your faith in beautiful things:  in the sun when its hidden; in Spring when its gone.
Which seemed apt.  The sentiment is SU from Trees Three.  The flower is Stampendous Agapanthus, and was stamped and embossed in white embossing powder.

Have a lovely weekend.

CAS-ual Friday - Baby Blossoms

Today, I've a day off and thought I'd try the CAS-ual Friday challenge - Week 51 - Happy Birthday (http://cas-ualfridays.blogspot.co.uk/).

Last week I started playing with SU Baby Blossoms, and was aiming for the pink/blue effect that I used in the centre of this card.  The blue and pink is such a nice colour combination - reminiscent of a summer day.

The flowers in the centre, are actually on the inside of the card, and were embossed in clear EP, and the blue was sponged on top.   The border, was cut from two layered nesties using the same coloured card with a bit more texture, which was sponged in blue and green.

This weekend is a long weekend, with a bank holiday monday, have a lovely weekend.

Baby Blossoms

Home alone again, daughter at work and hubby doing various chores for his Dad.  It was meant to be hoovering, washing and ironing.

Yesterday, I tried to make a card with SU Baby Blossoms, and it was bugging me, that I couldn't get it quite right.  I couldn't decide whether to buy these stamps, as they were so fiddly, but in the end I gave in to the cute roses and forget me nots.  However, for months, every time I look in my cupboard for inspiration, they look back with reproach as they never come out to play.  Eventually I've given in. So today, I used the LIM sketch and tried a different idea.

I think I may need more practise to get the position of flowers and leaves just right, and to ensure I don't spoil the effect by stamping in the wrong colour (joys of layering stamps).  Or maybe use for gift tags.

Less is More - 65 - sketch

Its been a wet day in Hampshire today, and it just happens that its my youngest daughter's 18th birthday this week, so I've made a card.  Well this is attempt number 2 - my first attempt involved trying to do a 'Kath Kidson' inspired design using the SU little blossoms and a masked 18 but the background was too busy and was fighting with the 18.  I turned the card over, and went more monochrome, and this was what I came up with:

Less is More - week 65 - sketch: simplylessismoore.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/week-65-sketch.html

My version:

The flower is Kathy Davis and the sentiment is SU. 
Not sure where the last 18 years have gone.   Happy Birthday, baby xx

Green 2

twice in one day... all this extra time off work, means more time to play

I made a card earlier - but wasn't sure if it was CAS enough.  So, I thought I'd have another go.  I've been rummaging through my old stamps, and I was inspired to pull out my old fern stamps which hadn't seen the light of day for ages.  My brother likes ferns, and I bought this stamp a few years ago to make leafy cards - its hard to have enough ideas to make different masculine cards.

The stamps are Ferns 4 from Local King Rubber Stamp (ebay purchase from Canada), and the inks are SU (Lucky Limeade, Always Artichoke and Wild Wasabi) and the green card is Lucky Limeade. This didn't scan brilliantly well - for some reason the sentiment isn't quite so washed out in real life.

Entering in: http://simplylessismoore.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/week-62-colour-challenge.html

and http://samueltaylors.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/april-challenge.html

Happy Easter

Green

This week the 'Less is More challenge' week 62 is three shades of green - (http://simplylessismoore.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/week-62-colour-challenge.html).

This was harder than I thought, maybe I should have stuck to leaves, but somehow that seemed the obvious answer!  Maybe I'll do something with leaves later in the week?  Anyhow here's my green card.

I didn't really like the green & khaki butterfly (although that was my starting point for this challenge), so I tried again:

I think I prefer this one - and as the grass was made up of 3 or 4 greens, maybe I've met the challenge (or maybe not quite enough white?).

My card uses SU Inspired by Nature - not sure if this was out in the UK, mine was from ebay, which was stamped in Lucky Limeade and Almost Artichoke, and I used some sage distress ink to sponge over some of the gaps to make it more greeny.  I used broken china DI sponged from the top down - because the green grass against white sky just looked wrong!  The sentiment is inkadinkado, which I love in conjunction with the green grass and blue sky.  The die is Cheery Lynn - small lace butterfly.

I'm also entering this in Samuel Taylor's April Challenge - green: http://samueltaylors.blogspot.co.uk/

Sarah & Steve

Sarah & Steve are getting married - Sarah is my ex-sister in law and is the sister I never had, we've shared ups and downs, and I'm really pleased that she's getting remarried.  As its a second wedding and they have grown up children I wanted to do something different.  Sarah loves purples, and we sent her some roses for the garden as a wedding present, including one which is lilac (Special Event - not only a good colour, but an appropriate name).

The Purple is SU Wisteria Wonder, with a little Concord Crush & some glitter to highlight the butterflies.  My DH did ask why it was a grey card, but he's not great at colours, and it really is a nice subtle lilac/purple. The butterflies are stuck down the middle, so the wings look like they are flying off the card.  The die is Celtic Heart Cheery Lynn, which looks lovely and so much better in real life.  I tried white on neutral colours, but it didn't do the heart justice.  

Its been my first full week at work for a few weeks - youngest daughter has been having university visits, and we've been on tour - not quite John O'Groats to Lands End - we did Perthshire to Cornwall... but pleased to say she's got offered a place at her favourite.  And eldest daughter is home for Easter.  So all is well in our house.  

Am entering this in http://www.samueltaylors.blogspot.co.uk/2012/03/march-challenge.html - which is butterflies -  its the end of March, just completed and photographed in time!

Mothering Sunday

Happy Mothering Sunday to my Mum - this is the card I made for her.  One of the reasons I started making cards was I could never find quite what I wanted in the shops - my Mum is most instant it is Mothering Sunday and not Mother's Day.  So this ones for you, Mum xx.

The sentiment was made on the computer, and I was quite pleased that I got the colour to match the pool party ink/card. The stamp used is SU - Precious Butterflies.   I used the same idea, with more butterflies for a slightly different card (as there are lots of March birthdays, and I had such fun spritzing the background)!

I am entering this into the Samuel Taylor March Callenge - butterflies http://samueltaylors.blogspot.co.uk/2012/03/march-challenge.html

Less is More 59 - Masking

This weeks Less is more is masking.

Today's challenge uses one of my favourite techniques - masking of top and bottom of the card - this seems especially suited to masculine cards, don't you think?  I have used a Unity stamp of a car.  In our family we love cars, and it was so hard to find a nice stamp of a car - this one came in a set with other masculine images.  I used a post-it pad to mask the car and sponged a background.  I used a marker to add a thin line just above and below the masked area to add a bit of definition. The sentiment is SU Curly Cute. The colours are SU: Night of Navy, Bashfull Blue and Lucky Limeade.

A second card (I said this was a favourite technique!)  In this one I used a post-it pad to mask of a square and blended some distress inks to make a neutral colour border.  I then stamped a variety of leaves from SU French foliage   The sentiment is from Penny Black - and I've only inked part of the stamp.  The leaves are in Sahara sand, Always artichoke and the yellow/red is from a big and Juicy inkpad - Mountain meadow.

My daughter is attending university interviews at the moment - last week was Edinburgh, so no time to play with crafts.  This Monday its Falmouth, a bit nearer home - but still 3 or 4 hours drive!

Think Spring, lets see some flowers!

Today's card is a one layer card and uses one of my favourite stamps - Agapanthus Cluster from Stampendous.  The background is using Distress Inks in pinks and blues (the butterfly was coloured with one of the distress inks, and edged with the same colour ink as the flowers - with the addition of a clear stickles to add some sparkle!).

 I am entering it into the Kaboodle Doodles - think spring, lets see some flowers challenge.

Week 57 - Less is More - Neutrals

Having been following, and sometimes playing along with Less is More challenges (http://simplylessismoore.blogspot.com), my first blog post is:

This uses a memory box die, mounted on some cream hammered card which has been sponged with a tiny bit of colour. And unusually for me there is no stamping involved.