Racoon

Here's a simple card that I made, after a more complicated card (including texture paste!)  using the same stamps came to an abrupt end when I dropped a juicy inkpad onto it!

The racoon is by My Favourite Things, sentiment brand unknown.

I'd like to enter:
Double D   woodland creatures
Tuesday Throwdown  black and white - I hope this qualifies as the base card is off-white
Addicted to Stamps  anything goes
Sisterhood of Crafters  cas

Snowing Again

It's snowing again...we seem to have had unusually frequent snow this winter; we're not used to it in my part of the world! But it does put me in the mood for making Christmas cards.

Here I used a Paper Smooches snowman, Promarkers, Distress Inks, white gel pen and a sentiment by Woodware.

I'd like to enter:
Winter Wonderland  anything goes
Christmas at Sweet Stampin 
Merry Christmas  snowmen
Watercooler Wednesday  Christmas

City Crafter Challenge Blog - Die Cuts

This week, at City Crafter,  Lucille is challenging us to use a die cut.

I used die-cuts I already had hanging about. The circle- heart die cut was 12 inches wide and I'd cut it on my Silhouette to use on a scrapbooking page...and then not used it! And leaving it around , I'd somehow managed to damage it, so I decided to cut it down to card size. The banner was also a left-over die-cut and I stamped it with an Avery Elle sentiment. I added gems to the hearts.

We look forward to seeing your projects for this challenge but please first go over to the blog and see wonderful projects  the rest of the DT have made.

I'd like to enter:

Tuesday Throwdown  black and white 

Cards in Envy  heart 

Just Add Ink  h for heart 

Cut it Up  anything goes 

Donut you Know

These donuts - including limbs, faces and the donut pun - are by Lawn Fawn. I coloured them with Promarkers and added gel pen sprinkles and 'sugar' with a shimmer pen. The other two sentiments are by Hero Arts.

I'd like to enter:
Casology - pun
Watercooler  masculine
Papercraft Challenges  sweets for my sweet
Crafty Catz  birthdays

Inkspirational - Photo Challenge

For our new challenge at Inkspirational, we'd like you to be inspired by this photo:

For my DT card I focussed on the coffee cup. I found a scrap of yellow textured card and I stamped it with a Penny Black image.I coloured it with coloured pencils, adding highlights with white gel pen. The sentiment is Hero Arts . I added some stitching effects around the edges using a metal wheel thingy. 

We have a wonderful Guest Designer, Lula , so please come over to Inkspirational and see what she and the DT have made and enter your project.

I'd like to enter:
Mod Squad animal fun
Craftaholics r us  anything goes
Allsorts  b is for beverage
Sparkle Forum  cas 

New Kennel

This evening I made a card inspired by some great challenges.

The dog is a new stamp by My Favorite Things, coloured with Promarkers, I cut the banner and the kennel, from white card, on the Silhouette and coloured them with inks and white gel pen. I used a Tim Holtz stencil and the sentiment is by Hunkydory.

I'd like to enter:
Color Throwdown 
Sisterhood of Crafters banner
Shopping our Stash  home
Dragonfly Journeys dog
Mod Squad  animal fun

City Crafter Challenge blog - Polka Dots

This week, at City Crafter, Amy wants us to use polka dots. Is this card polka-dotty enough??!!

The girl is Pure Innocence by MFT, I think the papers are Lawn Fawn and the sentiment Hero Arts.

We look forward to seeing your projects for this challenge but please first go over to the blog and see wonderful projects  the rest of the DT have made.

I'd like to enter:
Stamp Ink Paper  cardmaker's choice 
Papercraft Challenges sweets for my sweet 
Cardz4Galz   stamping (no digis) 

The Library Challenge - Pride and Prejudice Project 2

This is my second project for my new challenge The Library Challenge, where I'm inviting you to take inspiration from the book Pride and Prejudice.

So I admit, I'm a big fan of this book and have been since I was about fourteen years old and watched a TV adaptation of it. I read the book after watching the TV series and have read it several times since. Yes, the storyline is hopelessly romantic but Jane Austen is such a witty writer that I don't think the story ever gets too old. 

I had great fun making this card. First I found a silhouette on the web and traced it in Silhouette Studio. I added the quote and cut the figures out on the Silhouette cutter. Then I downloaded a PDF copy of the book , printed off an excerpt (the proposal ), coloured it with antique linen ink and stuck it behind the negative cut. Finally, I added ink blots (Visible Image) . 

I would love you to come over to the challenge blog and find out more about the challenge and enter your own project. 

I'd like to enter:
Crafty Cardmakers  love and romance
Little Red Wagon  luuurve 
Aloha Friday  love
Naughty or Nice  all loved up
AAA Cards  die cuts
Casology  together
Addicted to Stamps  cas

The Library Challenge - Pride and Prejudice Project 1

Today is the first challenge at The Library Challenge  - which is a new book-based challenge that I've started as my project for 2018.

The first challenge is the book Pride and Prejudice and you can take inspiration from the cover, the title or the story.

For my first project I was inspired by the peacock feathers in non-peacock colours. Using a cutting file , I cut the feather out on my Silhouette electronic cutter. I coloured part of the die cut with gold watercolour, and made a background using distress inks and a few splashes of the gold watercolour. I used a sparkly gem for the eye of the feather. I didn't put a sentiment, as I think it could be used for a range of occasions or 'just because'. 

I really hope you'll enter this new challenge. I have another project on this theme coming up...

I'd like to enter:
A bit More Time to Craft  anything goes
Create and Inspire  anything goes

Lazy Days

When I saw the new challenge at Addicted to Cas, I knew it'd be a good opportunity to use the neglected Hero Arts cat stamps I've had on my desk for ages. I stamped and masked the cat and stamped the cushion , colouring them both with Promarkers. The sentiment is from the same set - not sure what occasion I will use this for! The circular 'stitching' is a 49 and market stamp, and I doodled a frame around the edge.

I'd also like to enter
Time Out   Hobbies and olc- having pets is a hobby isn't it? (hope so)
QKR Stampede  anything goes

For my Daughter

Happy Valentine's Day and it's also my daughter's birthday , which has condemned her to a lifetime of heart themed birthday cards.

Here I used a set by My Favorite Things. The'daughter' stam is by Waffle Flower. The cutting was done on the Silhouette. Can you see the silly mistake I made when sticking the paper behind the aperture??!!

I'd like to enter:

Watercooler  occasions
Crazy Challenge  girl power
Pinspirational photo
Creative with Stamps  heart

Valentine's ...with Pigs!

This LOVE banner stamp is new from Avery Elle and it comes with lots of cute pairs of animals to hold it. However, I decided to use these two pigs from Sugar Pea. I stamped the pigs first, masked them and stamped the banner - then realised that the string seemed to be coming from behind their heads! So I used my Memento ink pen to extend the string into their mouths - can you see the join?

I coloured the pigs with alcohol markers and added some fresckles. I coloured the LOVE with red glitter pen , and also the trio of hearts (MFT) . The sentiment is by Lawn Fawn.

I'd like to enter:
AAA Cards love
Allsorts love
Use Your Stuff  love
Casology  together
Cardz4 Guyz beginning with L ...love

City Crafter Challenge Blog - Book Smart

It's my turn to choose the challenge at City Crafter this week, and I'd like you to make a book, bookmark or anything inspired by a book or by this picture:

For my DT project, I made a bookmark using a ready-made tag. I used stamps from two different My Favorite Things sets and used masking to make a scene. I coloured the images with Promarkers. The word 'books' is Papermania stickers. 

We look forward to seeing your projects for this challenge but please first go over to the blog and see wonderful projects  the rest of the DT have made.

I'd like to enter Just Us Girls . 

Inspirational Challenge - Aperture

At Inkspirational, Kylie has challenges us to use an aperture.

I made this shaker card for my son's 11th birthday , last week. He loves shaker cards and he loves football (soccer) . I tried to make it look like these W plus 9 pandas were goal-keepers - I'm not sure how well that worked, but he liked the card anyway!

We have a fabulous Guest Designer , Jen, so I hope you'll go over to the blog and see what she and the rest of the DT have made, before adding your aperture card.

I'd like to enter:
Shopping Our Stash sport
Double D  sequins
Always Happy Birthday  cas


 

A New Challenge - The Library Challenge

You might have noticed that every year I like to set myself a crafty challenge - last year, I CASED mass-manufactured cards ( called it Pro-Am Showdown)  and in previous years I've tackled my 'Paper Mountain'  and my unused stamps.

I noticed that several blogs closed last year and so I decided that my project this year would be to start my own challenge blog.


Combining my love of reading and papercrafts, I've called it 

The Library Challenge 

Please click on the link to have a look. The first challenge starts Sunday February 18th.

Patterned Valentine

The Valentine's cards just keep on coming! This one just developed organically as I was going along.

I used a big heart-shaped balloon (Avery Elle) , stamped in red ink. Then I masked off the background and stamped it with a big old Judkins harlequin stamp , using the same ink. Then I masked off the heart balloon and stencilled the background using a Tim Holtz stencil. I used a harlequin pattern embossing folder on the card base and designed and cut the sentiment on the Silhouette, colouring it with the same ink I used for the stencilling. Finally I added sequins.

I'd like to enter:
Addicted to Stamps  holiday
Inkspire Me  Valentine
4 Crafty Chicks  Mardi Gras - the Harlequin pattern is used a lot for Mardi Gras costumes/ masks
That's Crafty  heart
Dragonfly Journeys  love

Thunder in my Heart

Here's a Valentine /Love card, inspiredby an old Leo Sayer song, and a few great challenges.

The Eiffel Tower and the heart trio are from MFT 'In Paris' set and the lightning bolt is from MFT 'You're Super'. I printed the sentiment on my pc.

I'd like to enter:
Simply Create  fave colour combo
Challenge up your Life grey and yellow
Use Your Stuff weather
Crafting with dragonflies  valentine

Hearts in a Bell Jar

Since I bought this pile of hearts stamp from Lawn  Fawn, I've had fun thinking of different things to put them in. Here, I've put them in a Flora and Fauna bell jar and them stamped a Lil Inker flower stamp in the background. The 'love' stamp is by Alte New. I coloured the images with pencils (out of the comfort zone here) and added gold Liquid Pearls.

I'd like to enter:

Fab n Funky  Valentines words
Cupcake Inspirations  love
Cards in Envy  love
Try it on Tuesday  love is in the air
Watercooler  feminine