At the Fairground

Happy Mothers' Day to all you mums in the UK. (Not sure if it's Mothers' Day anywhere else?)

Here I used A Day for Daisies digi stamp and the big wheel was cut in Silhouette studio. The ticket and sentiment are stamps. The paper was a a magazine freebie.

I'd like to enter
A Day for Daisies  Pretty pastels
Stampin for the Weekend  Spring colours
Cuttin and Stampin Challenges Paper piecing 

For a sporty accountant

One of my brothers is an accountant who does triathlon and other sporty things. This is his birthday card.

I used the sketch from Kathy's Waffle Sketch File  and cut the runner etc in Silhouette Studio. The number stamps are Hampton Art and 7 Gypsies. 

I'd also like to enter:
Hiding in my Craft Room  freestyle
Alphabet Challenge die cuts  

Inkspirational Challenge and DT Call!

Our Inkspirational Challenge this week is to CASE our DT member Sandie. You can see four of her creations on the Inkspirational Challenge blog , or you can go to Sandie's blog  and choose your own. This is the one I chose:

You can see that I was very heavily influenced by Sandie's card! I used two very old wood-backed stamps - the woman is by Hampton Art and the cocktails are Rubber Stampede. The sentiment is a clear stamp.

This challenge we also have a fabulous guest designer - another Sandie!  Please go and see what she's done.

Finally, we have a DT call at Inkspirational and we'd love you to enter. All you have to do is read the details, make a project for the challenge and add DT after your name.

I'd like to enter:
A Song in your He(art)  Celebration
Charisma Cardz CAS

Festive 48 - week 11

Struggled a little for ideas this week - thought I wasn't going to get one done- but committing to this weekly post really disciplines me!

The papers and sentiment are a digital version of Echo Park Sleigh Ride and the penguin and snowflakes are cutting files, cut on my electronic die-cutter. I am soooo hybrid now! I added a touch of sparkle with some gems.

Just to recap, I have challenged myself to make a Christmas card every week , and post it here (to make sure I do it!) . If I do this, by the beginning of December I will have 48 Christmas cards. I have also issued an invitation to anyone who would like to join me.

Thank you to everyone who's joined me so far. I love seeing your cards. 

I'd like to link up with:
Crafty Creations holiday 
Festive Friday  photo
Christmas Stampin fave colour combo - blue and white for Christmas again! 
Completely Christmas 
 Holly Jolly  Winter scene - Penguin in snow, kids sledging in the distance - okay it's an unbelievable scene, but it's a scene!

An InLinkz Link-up

Travel Notes

Here's a little notebook/ mini album I made using one sheet of Graphic 45 paper(on the cover), a digital version of Echo Park Transatlantique and lots of distress ink.

I copied the binding idea ( two nuts and screws from the garage) from something I'd seen in a Tim Holtz video - it didn't show how to make it, it was a commercially produced item called a 'ruler book'. Well, I don't think I got it quite right as, as you can probably tell from the photographs, the book doesn't open very well! I will have to rethink if I am going to give it away,

I'd like to enter:
Paula Holifield Crafts  Are we there yet?
Craft room Challenge Transport
City Crafter  Take Note

Spring Dominoes

Earlier this week, I'm ashamed to report, I got myself disqualified from one of my favourite challenge blogs by making two rookie mistakes:
1) I didn't read the theme carefully enough
2) I got carried away and forgot the 'max 5 challenges' rule .

I like the Artful Times challenge - they often have more unusual themes and they have a small, friendly DT . So I've gone back to the drawing board and had another shot.

These are my favourite two of the 14 dominoes I stamped (not joking!).

I used Promarker pens for the coloured backgrounds and Staz-on for the stamping. The daffodil stamp is an unknown UM and the word 'growth ' is from 7 Gypsies Numero set.  The birds nest is from a clear set (lost packet again) and the script is Indigo Blu. I ran a Krylon silver pen around the edge.

As well as Artful Times  I'd like to enter:
Altered Eclectics 
Stamplorations  spring
Come and Get it Challenges  spring
..and that's it!

London Scene

I love grey at the moment.
Here I am using it again, this time to stamp this Mary Poppins silhouette by Lost Coast Designs.

The buses and Big Ben were sent to me by my lovely blog friend Sandie .  The background is the first page from the book 'Mary Poppins'.

There's nothing crooked about my card - just my photography!

I'd like to enter:

Twisted Tuesday Don't go near the edge
Fashionable Stamping Challenges  silhouettes
The Squirrel and the Fox Inspired by a book
Paper Crafting Journey   photo

Paris Break

This is the second time I've used this Stampin Bella stamp that I bought in February - well done me for getting some use out of it!

I'd like to enter:
Love to Create Bingo - lace, flowers, pink
Created with Love Girly
Jellypark  Pastels
Stamping Sensations pink
The Craft Garden  pastels

Trapeze Artist

Belatedly,I upload the card I made for my daughter's birthday - it was on Valentine's Day, hence the heart. She was having a party with her friends in a circus-themed restaurant and I took this idea and was inspired by one of my favourite pictures ( Miss Lala at the Cirque Fernando) to feature a trapeze artist.

The trapeze artist was digitally cut from an SVG border file, then electronically cut on the Silhouette Cameo. I also cut the frame, heart, bunting and the sentiment shape (after typing in the sentiment). I added shimmery paper, glitter, background paper (Tim Holtz) , gems and a feather and I embossed the heart.

I'd like to enter:
Crafty Boots feathers
Crazy 4 challenges shake your thing
Cut it Up  anything goes
Silhouette Challenges create your own scene
Hiding in My Craft Room  Let's get digital
A song in your (He)art Celebration

Mojometer

I was inspired to make this project by the 'Game Pieces' challenge at Artful Times  but looking back at their blog now, I'm not sure I 100% followed the brief - maybe I should have altered an existing game piece. 

Anyway, this is a 'mojometer' - you spin it when you lose your crafting mojo and then you have to follow what it  says :

Follow a sketch                 Copy a colour combo                  Try a new technique

Watch a video                    CASE someone’s card                 Play with a stamp set

Pick a patterned paper              Pimp an old project 

I made it using my elctronic die cutter and a cutting file from the Silhouette store  - I'm sure you could do this by hand if you had very good cutting skills (which I don't!). 

Although this looks multi-coloured, I only used four Distress ink pads plus black and white cardstock. I used a flower stamp by a different company for each segment. I printed the words onto Safmat clear film. 

As well as Artful Times  I'd like to enter:

Flonzcraft   just for you

Creative Cutting   anything goes 

Crafting for all seasons  no designer paper 

Little Red Wagon  rainbow of colours

4 Crafty Chicks  no patterned paper

Alphabet Challenge  country flowers 

Craftitude add a brad 
That's Crafty  Inky Antics - ooh excited to see this new challenge - I'm a customer of theirs 

Festive 48 - week 10

There are lots of challenges on at the moment for green cards, due to St Patrick's Day, so I stole the idea for a Christmas card.

Just to recap, I have challenged myself to make a Christmas card every week , and post it here (to make sure I do it!) . If I do this, by the beginning of December I will have 48 Christmas cards. I have also issued an invitation to anyone who would like to join me.

Thank you to everyone who's joined me so far. I love seeing your cards. 

For this card I had an aperture of a Christmas tree and I covered it using strips of scrap patterned paper. I didn't use any technique!  I added two chipboard pieces and some greenish pearls. 

I'd like to enter:

http://twistedtuesdaychallenges.blogspot.co.uk/ clean and green

http://delightfulsketches.blogspot.co.uk/ green

http://www.4craftychicks.blogspot.co.uk/ tree

http://craftyhazelnutschristmaschallenge.blogspot.co.uk/ green

An InLinkz Link-up

Have a Lovely Day

I really like the free sentiment stamp with this month's Craft Stamper Magazine. I used it on this card with elements and papers from Fancy Pants' Park Bench range.

Actually, only the scrap of floral paper on the bottom was from an actual paper pack. The frame and the pattern on the flowers were all made with a digital version of the set. I brought them into the Silhouette Cameo and made the frame into a Print and Cut file. I used the 'fill pattern' tool on a flower cutting file and the bird is a cutting file from SVG Cuts. I inked everything with 'Antique Linen' as I often feel home-printed papers look a little too clean!

I'd like to enter:
Creative Cutting Challenge Anything Goes
Crafters Cafe square card
Dazzling Diva frame
Paper Minutes sentiments
Creative Knockouts things with wings

Pinspirational Challenge 99 - Giving it some Wellie

Time for another Pinspirational Challenge and here's the inspirational photo:

You can clearly see my influences, I guess!  I composed my card using a digi kit in Craft Artist, printed it, and embellished it.

How does the photo influence you? I doesn't have to be as obvious as mine - maybe pink with spots or stars, or the flowers. We have some fabulous sponsors, so come over to Pinspirational and join in.

I'd like to enter :

http://incywincydesigns.blogspot.co.uk/ monchromatic 

http://craftcreatoins.blogspot.co.uk/ anything goes 

http://bunnyzoescrafts.blogspot.co.uk/ monchrome

New Home ..with Cats

Here's a card that took much longer to design than to make. It's another 'challenge Mum' from my daughter. She wanted a new home card for her cat-loving friend.

The letters were cut on my electronic die cutter and the cats are foiled die-cuts from Hunkydory.

I'd like to enter:

http://cardmaniachallenges.blogspot.co.uk/ something new

http://casology.blogspot.co.uk/ roots

http://craftycalendarchallenge.blogspot.co.uk/ animal antics

http://stuckonusketches.blogspot.co.uk/ die cuts- house 

Yoga

Regular visitors to 'My Perfect Life' may remember me saying that, much as I love to enter blogland challenges, my greatest challenges are set by my dear daughter.

Yesterday, while I was at work , I received a text ' I need a congrats card for [my friend] as she has graduated as a yoga teacher. No pressure but I need it for tomorrow morning, '

At times like these, I turn to hybrid crafting. The background is a digital version of a  Basic Grey What's Up  paper. I digitally added the bird and printed it out; stamped 'congratulations (Stampin Up) and matted it onto teal cardstock.  I put 'yoga' into the search box at the Silhouette store and picked this cut file . I cut an offset in teal and used a 'fill pattern' to add clouds to the silhouette,

So, at seven o clock this morning I was able to text my daughter and say 'your yoga card is ready for collection '!

I'd like to enter:

QKR Stampede  anything goes 

Wags and Whiskers  sports (I googled to see if yoga is considered a sport and discovered it's a hot topic of debate! ) 

Stampin for the weekend  anything goes 

Dancing in the Rain

Two of my lovely team-mates from Inkspirational have started their own challenge blog Time Out . Their theme is 'Dancing in the rain' and here's my take on that.

The silhouette of the dancing couple and the lamp-post were from two different My Craft Studio cds and I imported them into my Silhouette Cameo and die-cut them. The background was printed off from somewhere else and I stamped it with raindrops from a Stampin Up stamp. The die-cut with the umbrella and sentiment is from an American Crafts digital collection and I added some adhesive gems.

As well as Time Out, I'd also like to enter:
Papercrafting Journey  photo inspiration (umbrella)
Addicted to Stamps  Anything Goes

Inkspirational Challenge 52

Here's my DT card for this week's Inkspirational challenge  and here's the Inkspirational picture:

You can see I've been quite unimaginative and used the idea of both the sheep and the colours.  I used a Joanna Sheen stamp and multiple colours of Distress Ink pads and sponges.

This time we have a great Guest Designer, Gerrina , so please check out what Gerrina, and the Inskspirational DT have done, and have a go yourself.

I'd like to enter:

 Use your Stuff  animals

Fab n Funky  animals

Simply Create too  animals 

Geisha in Distress

I've not had much time to craft this week - having a heavy week at work and also building work at home, I've been struggling to stay awake past 9.30! So I've made myself stay up tonight as I feel grumpy when I don't get time to craft!

The geisha and the background paper are from Debbi Moore oriental CD and I decided to grunge them up. I sponged 'Antique Linen' ink pad over the geisha image and then melted multiple layers of clear embossing powder over the top. My intention was to crack it but it wouldn't crack!! So instead I randomly stamped a crackle stamp over the top of the ep. I coloured the edges with a gold pen.

I crumpled up the background paper and distressed it using black ink, water and a distresser tool. I added an oriental charm that was part of a lovely prize package I won a while back from CD Sunday . I have no idea what it says so hope it's not inappropriate!

I'd like to enter:
CD Sunday  red
Eclectic Ellapu   vintage
Creative Card Crew charm
Addicted to stamps  anything goes
Artful Times  anything goes

Festive 48 - Week 9

Does this card look Christmassy to you? I can't decide! The stamp, the papers, sticker and die-cuts all came from Christmas ranges but still... I actually made this while at my local scrapbooking group and when I asked if it looked Christmassy, one of the women said - 'Well it will look Christmasssy at Christmas!' . Maybe she has a point.

So, the stamp is Molly Bloom, the die-cuts and stickers are from a magazine ( years old) and I used markers, glitter glue and gold liquid pearls.

Just to recap, I have challenged myself to make a Christmas card every week , and post it here (to make sure I do it!) . If I do this, by the beginning of December I will have 48 Christmas cards. I have also issued an invitation to anyone who would like to join me.

Thank you to everyone who's joined me so far. I love seeing your cards. 

I'd like to enter:
Holly Jolly Christmas Challenge Fairies/angels
Jellypark Challenges Things with wings
Completely Christmas Christmas
Crafty Catz  Paper-piecing 

An InLinkz Link-up

Housework

'Housework fascinates me...I could watch you do it all day long'.
I covered an MDF tag with ripped papers , gesso, masking and ink spray. I printed the sentiment and the sticker is by October Afternoon.

I'd like to enter:
Craft - room Challenge  20th century
Card-making Mamas splish splash
Country View challenges  paper chase
Addicted to Stamps  International Women's Day

Festive 48 - Week 8

Week 8, and I'm looking around the Christmas card challenges to help me keep coming up with ideas. This week Holly Jolly Christmas Challenge  had the theme 'reindeer' and a couple of their DT linked up to my last linky. (Thank you!) They used cute reindeers so I thought I'd do something different.

I made a background by sponging red and green inks, then stamped it with stamps from a set of stamps I got free with a magazine ages ago.  Then I sprayed it with glitter varnish ( and nearly knocked myself out with the fumes!) .

I mounted it on patterned mirror card ( can you spot me in the reflection?) and added die-cut holly with liquid pearl berries.

Just to recap, I have challenged myself to make a Christmas card every week , and post it here (to make sure I do it!) . If I do this, by the beginning of December I will have 48 Christmas cards. I have also issued an invitation to anyone who would like to join me.

Thank you to everyone who's joined me so far. I love seeing your cards. 

As well as Holly Jolly Christmas , I'd also like to enter 
Fab n Funky  Christmas 
Crafty Hazelnut Christmas  Anything goes 
Simply Create Too Shop in your stash 

An InLinkz Link-up

Pinspirational Challenge #97

It's time for another Pinspirational challenge  and here's the inspirational picture:

For my DT card I used a digi called Deacon Swing, kindly provided by our sponsors, Bugaboo. 
I printed it onto kraft card, coloured it with gel pens and paper-pieced the Tshirt. I made a gatefold card with an aperture, covered it with patterned paper and added buttons and a birthday sentiment.
(In real life the buttons are pretty much the same colour, I don't know why in the photo one looks pink!) .

What ideas does the photo give you - children, teddies, toys, green (the grass etc) ...whatever it does for you, I hope you'll have a go and join us at Pinspirational. 

I'd also like to enter:
Sisterhood of Crafters  One for the boys
Brown Sugar  colours
Papercrafting Journey boyish
Craft your Passion  birthday bonanza

Welcome Baby

It's been so long since we had a girl born amongst our family and friends that my son asked me (when 6) if all babies were boys! Never mind, if one comes along , I'm ready!

This image is from Lili of the Valley and the sentiment is from..er..somewhere else (lost packet again).
I stamped some hearts from Greeting Farm ( I won this stamp a while back) onto pearlised card for the background and also used a paper scrap, which I also used to paper-piece the blanket.

I'd like to enter:
Sentimental Sundays sketch
Make My Monday  babies
Stamping Sensations pretty in pink
ABC Challenge g is for girls
Bearly Mine One for the girls

Winter Olympics

An extra Christmas card this week because I want to enter the 'Winter Olympics' challenge at Winter Wonderland. This stamp is a very old UM , maker unknown. The paper is a scrap left from a freebie paper pack and I traced some of the swirls with a Versamark pen and embossed them. I also heat embossed the sentiment (Hero) with silver EP and added a mirror snowflake.

As well as Winter Wonderland , I'd also like to enter
Completely Christmas  anything goes
Christmas Card Challenges heat embossing

Pretty Random

I was trying something different here - inspired by a picture I've seen of stitched lines and semi-circles.

I didn't quite achieve the effect I was going for, but I quite like it anyway. Expect to see the idea re-visited!

I used two shades of grey card, patterned paper scrap, circle punch, embossing folder and pearls. I attempted a stitching effect with paper pricking and pen. I couldn't use my sewing machine because a) I can't get to it as it is hidden behind the contents of my kitchen (getting new kitchen fitted) and b) I'm a coward!

I'd like to enter:
Crazy for Challenges  orchid ( I hope I've got this shade right)
Make my Monday  Grown up card
CASual Fridays Two Shades of Grey
Artful Times Anything Goes

Inkspirational Challenge 51 - Purple White and Green

It’s time for another challenge at Inkspirational and this time, it’s a colour challenge – purple, white and green. You can choose to use any two, or all three of these colours.

This week we have been joined by a fantastic guest designer, Cathy. Please visit her blog and the Inkspiration Challenge blog to see her lovely creation.

I chose this colour combo because it’s International Women’s Day on March 8^th and purple, white and green were the campaign colours of the Suffragettes, who fought for votes for women in the UK.

For my card, I kept it very simple, parodying a well-known cosmetics advert and using die-cut ‘women’.

Please come and join us at Inkspirational and show us what you can do with purple, white and green. 

I'd like to enter:

Addicted to Stamps CAS

Delightful Challenges keep it simple 

Crafty Catz anything goes