Craft-a-Mundo

Gift Box

2011-09-06T21:27:00.007+01:00

I have managed another 2 for 1 this evening. Over on Totally Papercrafts the challenge was "Not a card" and on Moving Along With The Times the challenge was to use "Handmade Flowers". To tie in with both these challenges I have made a gift box topped with a handmade rose. This is the first time I have made one of
these roses and therefore this was real
challenge for me.

Last one for tonight

2011-09-03T22:46:00.002+01:00

Again, another 2 for 1 challenge.
Party theme for A Spoonful of Sugar and the sketch from this mornings Sketch Saturday.

Right, off to bed now.

Diva-tacular

2011-09-03T17:16:00.002+01:00

Another 2 for 1 this afternoon. The theme for Stamptacular Sunday Challenge was "Diva-tacular" and I thought this gorjuss girl just fits the bill. The layout is from this weeks Papertake Weekly challenge.

I have followed a tutorial for colouring in with promarkers to colour the image as I felt my last few attampts were a little rusty.

Going Buggy

2011-09-02T22:22:00.003+01:00

One card, two challenges.
The theme on Digital Tuesday was "Going Buggy" hence the ladybird and the Sketch is from Card Patterns.

Low Flying Balloon

2011-08-31T20:01:00.004+01:00

Just took these this evening as a Hot Air Balloon took off from Endcliffe Park. A little bit low for my liking.

There'll be bluebirds...

2011-08-29T21:03:00.003+01:00

Two for the price of one here. The theme for Moving Along witht the Times was "Birdys" and the layout is from this weeks Sketch Saturday challenge. Quite a simple card to make, and a break away from yellow.

"Trim a Tree"

2011-08-29T13:56:00.004+01:00

Cute penguins trimming their Christmas tree.

Back to School and Dies to Die For

2011-08-27T14:56:00.002+01:00

I think yellow must be my new favourite colour.
I have made this notebook to complete two blog challenges - Totally Papercrafts and Papertake Weekly. The theme on Totally Papercrafts was "Back to School" and seeing as I go back to school next week I decided to make this notebook for myself. The theme on Papertake Weekly was "Dies to Die For". I don't have much in the way of dies, but found these nestabilities that worked nicely with my "sunny yellow" theme.

First one for today

2011-08-27T10:35:00.003+01:00

I enjoyed making this card last night. The lovely bright colours made a change to the very grey and dismal day outside.

The image was a freebie digital stamp from Cuddly Buddly Crafts. I coloured her in using promarkers in shades of lime and yellow to match the papers.

I am entering this into the blog challenges on Digital Tuesday where the theme was "Cute and Girly", and for A Spoonful of Sugar where the theme was "Happy Birthday".

Stamptacular Sunday Challenge

2011-08-25T11:53:00.002+01:00

This week's challenge is a…

“ABC’s!”

For this weeks challenge you will create a card or a project that has the colour “A”pricot, (shades of orange/peach), “B”ling, and “C”ute “C”ritter (animals or bugs) on it!

I have used the sketch from this weeks Sketch Saturday challenge to create this card. The stamp is from Penny Black and the papers came from my bit box.

Sketch saturday and Totally Papercrafts

2011-08-23T21:46:00.002+01:00

I can't believe that I have made my first christmas card and it is only the end of August.
I have made this card to fulfill two blog challenges: Sketch Saturday and Totally Papercrafts.

The papers came from my little (or rather big) box of Christmassy bits and pieces and the stamp, coloured in with promarkers, came in the latest DoCrafts goody bag.

Wedding Card and Gift - Moving Along With the Times

2011-08-22T12:54:00.001+01:00

I made this card and gift for a friend who got married on New Year's Eve 2008.
I have chosen this for this weeks "Moving Along With the Times" challenge because I remember being really pleased with the technique and the finished product.

The candle is made using a Papermania stamp on tissue paper which is then "melted" into the candle using a heat gun. I then added sticky ribbons and gems. On the back I have written the name of the bride and groom and the date of the wedding. The card is made using the same stamp and then layered on to pink roses paper.

I have also made a gift bag for the candle using 12"x12" cream paper which is embossed with hearts. I then added a gold ribbon and tag. The tag was made using the same papers as the card.

Digital Tuesday Challenge

2011-08-21T22:07:00.002+01:00

I paid my first visit to Digital Tuesday this afternoon and decided to have a go at this weeks challenge, "On the Farm". I have used a cow clip art for my main image and the cow print background is also a digital image found courtesy of google.

Just gorjuss

2011-08-21T17:09:00.003+01:00

Just finished this "gorjuss" cross stitch this afternoon. I love anything to do with gorjuss girls and am really pleased with this. I now need to find a space on Maddie's wall for it.

Notice Board

2011-08-20T21:11:00.003+01:00

Well, I appear to have been on a bit of a roll today. This morning I made this noticeboard using a bit of mdf I found in the shed. I padded it with quilt wadding, attahced the fabric and ribbons, securing in place with a few buttons. I got the idea from Simply Homemade magazine. I am really pleased with it - just need to find somewhere to put it now.

Just Magnolia - Sentiments

2011-08-20T20:54:00.002+01:00

It has been such a long time since I completed a card for a challenge blog so I am really pleased that I managed to do this one. The challenge was to include a "funny sentiment". I did a bit of research to find a quote that would fit with one of the Tilda stamps that I own and finally found a lovely one; "Little girls, like butterflies, need no excuse." This was written by Robert A Heinlein, who I believe is actually a science fiction writer. This quote seemed to fit well with Tilda and her butterfly wings.

Noah's Ark Clock

2011-08-20T17:57:00.006+01:00

I made this a few weeks ago. I got the idea from the simply Homemade magazine. It is now hanging proudly in Maddie's room.

Baby Play Mat

2011-01-13T12:22:00.002Z

I wanted to post this a few weeks ago but didn't want to spoil the surprise for my friend Lynn. I made this play mat for her baby girl Freya, who was born on the 9th December. It was made using a kit I bought from Bicester Wools (formally The Stitchery). This is the first time Ihave attempted anything like this and I am very pleased with the finished product and I am sure that Freya likes it too.

Forever Friends Christmas Cards

2010-10-29T18:09:00.018+01:00

I have to make a load of cards for the stall I am having at Maddie's Pre-School Christmas Fayre at the end of November. This is my first load of cards made using a Forever Friends bumper kit I bought from Create and Craft a few weeks ago.

60th Birthday Card

2010-10-29T16:18:00.002+01:00

This is the first time I have made a side stepper card. I had a few difficulties trying to get the measurements right as I made it from a piece of A3 card and all the templates I could find only had the measurements for A4 cards. But Igot there in the end. I then decided to have a black and white theme for the card. The images came from Craft a dream and were downloadable decoupage type images.

I'm back!

2010-09-10T17:32:00.002+01:00

I cannot believe that it is over 6 months since I last posted on here. Wow! Well it has been a rather difficult 6 months with lots of changes, but things finally seem to be settling down. I have moved house and am now living with my daughter and my parents; not ideal but needs must. I have given up my job and am no longer working as a teacher, although I do hope to return to teaching sooner rather than later. As the last 6 months have involved so many changes I haven't had a great deal of time for any crafting, but now that things are settling down a bit I hope to try and do a bit more. I have loads of projects to do, so watch this space...hopefully.

Card Patterns

2010-02-18T20:15:00.003Z

Here is my final post for tonight. This is my card for this weeks Card Patterns challenge. I decided not to use an image and just use a text stamp instead. I am pleased with how the card turned out and think that the simple choice of colours is quite effective.

Sketch Saturday

2010-02-18T20:07:00.002Z

For the sketch over on Sketch Saturday I decided to try something a little different. The background of my card is embossed acetate, with the main design stuck on to it. I am really pleased with the effect.

Friday Sketchers

2010-02-18T20:01:00.002Z

I enjoyed using one of the lovely digital stamps that I won from last weeks Friday Sketchers to create this card. The sketch was really simple to follow but looks quite effective.

Friday Sketchers Winner is...

2010-02-12T09:11:00.002Z

...me!

What a really lovely surprise this mornng to discover that I had won this weeks challenge. I am so excited. I have won four digital stamps, and they are really sweet. No doubt they will appear on my cards very soon.

The winning card is my Lets Party one with the cute piggy on it.

Just Magnolia Monthly Challenge

2010-02-08T14:44:00.004Z

There was a fab tutorial on how to make an Easter Basket using paper weaving on Just Magnolia and as I love Tilda and chocolate I couldn't resist this challenge. The challenge was to make an Easter basket of some sort, but as it is Just Magnolia you had to use a Magnolia stamp. Anyway, this is my entry for the challenge. I really enjoyed doing this, even if it did take a bit longer than usual.

Friday Sketchers

2010-02-06T10:22:00.003Z

A very nice sketch on Friday Sketchers. It looked a bit complicated at first, but once I got started it was OK. I really struggled to find a small enough image but settled on the pig stamp from the Honey 'n' Hugs collection.

Winter Wonderland

2010-02-05T10:00:00.002Z

The theme for the Winter Wonderland challenge and blog hop was "Candy Cane Red and White". I have no stamps with candy canes on them so I did a hunt on the internet and found this really cute clip art image of Donald Duck with candy canes. I printed him out and then coloured him in with promarkers. I then used my Slice (for the first time in ages) to cut the red and white background shapes, using the scrap red card to create the stripes behind the greeting.

Friday Sketchers

2010-02-04T16:05:00.002Z

A lovely, fairly simple sketch on Friday Sketchers this week. I have used the Forever Friends Just For Him decoupage pack to create my card.

Just Magnolia

2010-02-04T16:01:00.001Z

The theme for this weeks challenge on Just Magnolia was Hearts and Flowers. I have used the Tilda with hearts stamp and coloured her in with pro-markers. I have then added several paper flowers and the gem in the middle of the flowers is even a tiny heart shape.

Winter Wonderland

2010-01-24T18:27:00.004Z

I'm not sure if I've done a card for Winter Wonderland before, but here is the card I have created for this weeks sketch.

Card Patterns

2010-01-24T18:24:00.002Z

Here is the second card that I have managed to complete today, again using the papers from the Do Crafts Goody Bag. The stamp is also from the Goody Bag and is coloured with promarkers.

Sketch Saturday

2010-01-24T18:20:00.002Z

I can't believe that it has been 4 months since I have managed to post a card to my blog. This is the first of three cards that I have managed to complete today.

The papers are from the current Do Crafts Goody Bag. They are really lovely and work well together. The stamp is a Gorjuss Girl.

Sketch Saturday

2009-09-20T15:37:00.002+01:00

I must be on a roll as I have managed to complete 8 ATCs and 2 cards in less than 24 hours.

This is my card for the Sketch Saturday challenge. I have rotated the sketch to create my card. I have used some of the lovely Snowman decoupage and papers to make this card.

Stamptacular Sunday Challenge

2009-09-19T20:49:00.002+01:00

After a few months of not managing to get any cards made I finally decided that today I would visit a few old favourites and complete a challenge. I decided to do the Stamptacular Sunday Challenge, which was a lovely sketch challenge.
Here is my card:

Stamptacular Sunday Challenge

2009-07-24T15:52:00.004+01:00

As well as the Bonus Fun challenge on Stamptacular Sunday Challenge this week, there was also the weekly challenge. This week it was entitled "Shapetacular Card." You had to " create a card with an unusual, out of the ordinary shape! NO square or rectangle cards allowed! Along with this requirement you must also include some sort of stamping on your card!"

I have used a new template that I bought earlier this week and my stamps are the Jolly Nation knight and princess. I have had fun creating this card (which has taken me most if the day).

Crafts 4 U Forum

2009-07-21T14:59:00.002+01:00

This months colour swap is Gold. I have made three of these. They are lovely and bold.

Stamptacular Sunday Challenge - Build-a-card

2009-07-19T23:10:00.002+01:00

It has been ages since I have participated in a challenge, but this one caught my eye and I decided to give it a go. Over on Stamptacular Sunday Challenge there is a Blog Hop with a difference. Each of the DT blogs gives an element to be used to "build-a-card". The elements were: Blue, oval, matting, stamped image, two more colours, ribbon, flowers, charm, sparkle and a friendship themed sentiment. I think I have managed to include all of the elements..

Just Magnolia - Week 9 Paper Piecing

2009-06-16T17:29:00.002+01:00

This was the only card that I managed to do at the Craft Club day at my local garden centre on Saturday. The challenge on Just Magnolia was to create a card using paper piecing. This is the first time that I have stamped on to patterned paper and used it as part of my image.

A Few ATCs

2009-06-16T11:32:00.008+01:00

I have been a bit pre-occupied lately to get any blogging done. Unfortunately, my Mum had a car accident last week. Thankfully both Mum and Dad are OK, just a bit shaken.

Anyway, I have a few ATCs to share today:

Firstly, I made these ATCs for the swap at my local garden centre on Saturday. The them was "Father's Day". I love these stamps, and I coloured them in with my new promarkers. I am really pleased with the quality of the colouring. When the ribbon is pulled a small message appears.

Secondly, this one is for the Monthly Lottery over on Crafts 4 U. The theme was Black and White.

Then I have a set of three of these for the Monthly swap also on Crafts 4 U, where the theme was Weddings / Brides. I got this cute little image from a Rob Thomas CD that I won in a raffle a few years ago.

Finally, I have these two for the DoCrafts A-Z of Techniques, where this months letters are K and L. I really struggled with the letter K, but came up with "Kite Fold" from Tea bag folding. L was easier. I did Lacé.

Stamptacular Sunday Challenge - Blog Hop Bonus Challenges

2009-05-31T23:04:00.008+01:00

On Priscilla's blog there were 3 bonus challenges as part of the Stamptacular Sunday Challenge - Blog Hop. These are my entries:

1. Create a project using the following ingredients:

3 brads, eyelets or buttons

3 different pattern papers

glitter or some other sort of bling

2 stamped images

(There is glitter on the flowers.)

2. Create last week's Stamptacular Sunday Challenge: "Oh, for the Love of Chocolate!": You are free to create whatever you wish as long as you use some sort of stamping and include chocolate somewhere!

3. Create a card or project using this sketch:

Well, I am exhausted now after all that hopping and I am off to bed.

Stamptacular Sunday Challenge - Blog Hop Challenge

2009-05-31T18:21:00.002+01:00

As part of the Stamptacular Sunday Challenge Blog Hop some of the design team have added extra little challenges along the way. Nikki's challenge was to create a card for one of the children on this website.

This is the card that I have made for Emily. I hope she likes it.

A Maze of Memories Workshop

2009-05-30T20:39:00.004+01:00

I had a fabulous afternoon today attending a workshop at A Maze of Memories. The title was "Decorated Clipboard". Well, here is my attempt. I am really pleased with the finished product. The papers are Basic Grey Wisteria papers with co-ordinating stamps. The big flower is made of Bazzill Bling paper in a lovely lilac colour. I then added a bit of glitter on the flowers and dragon flies.

Just Magnolia - Week 7

2009-05-29T19:48:00.002+01:00

I have finally got round to making a card for the first time in ages. This is for the Just Magnolia Challenge where the theme is Animals and Insects. The stamp is my newest addition to my Tilda collection and it is perfect for this challenge. I used my Slice cutter to cut the background shape, and the shape for the greeting.

New ATCs

2009-05-28T11:07:00.005+01:00

I can't believe that a month has gone by since my last post. I have been so busy with other things. Anyway, I haven't made any cards for ages, but I did manage a few ATCs yesterday.

These are Purple and Green for a swap on Crafts 4 U.

These are for the A-Z of techniques swap on DoCrafts. This month the letters are I and J. I have done I is for Iris Folding:

and J is for Journaling.

Finally, back to Crafts 4 U for this months monthly swap where the theme is Flowers.

Just Magnolia - Week 2

2009-04-28T15:31:00.003+01:00

I just love Tilda and I haven't created a card with her for ages, so I was thrilled to discover this new challenge blog called Just Magnolia. The colour theme was to use Pink and Green and of course a Magnolia stamp.

Stamp With Fun

2009-04-26T19:29:00.002+01:00

This is my first entry over on "Stamp with Fun". A lovely sketch for which I have chosen to use various shades of green along with a Penny Black stamp.

Papertake Weekly Challenge

2009-04-26T15:20:00.004+01:00

A lovely sketch on Papertake Weekly Challenge. I have finally got round to making this card this afternoon using a Tilda image that I stamped yesterday at a craft day.

Daisy and Dandelion

2009-04-20T18:02:00.002+01:00

Well, I was looking through my sketch booklet when I remembered I had a lovely sketch in there for the Daisy and Dandelion blog, so I set to and made my card this afternoon. However, when I have checked back to the blog I realise that I have missed the closing date by 2 days. OOOOOops!

Anyways, thought that I would post the card anyway to see what you think.

Colour Create - Black, White and Pink

2009-04-20T14:15:00.002+01:00

It's been a few weeks since I have taken part in a Colour Create Challenge, but this week I had just the stuff to use - new Bagpuss decoupage papers. The colours of course were Black, White and Pink (there must be something in the air this week about Black and White).

I am really pleased with how this one has turned out.

Stamptacular Sunday Challenge

2009-04-19T17:49:00.002+01:00

It's funny because the other day I had a dream about Black and White and today the challenge on Stamptacular Sunday Challenge was Black, White + One (where the One was any other colour). I have been after these little Oriental Doll stamps for ages and I finally found them in a shop nearby this morning, so here they are on their first outing. I chose to go with the Oriental colour of red as my other colour. It also makes a change to make a long card rather than a square one.

Sketch Saturday

2009-04-17T17:30:00.003+01:00

A lovely sketch on Sketch Saturday last week.
I have combined some lovely papers with this cute Penny Black stamp to complete my card.

Penny Black Saturday Challenge

2009-04-17T15:59:00.002+01:00

Last Saturdays challenge over on Penny Black Saturday Challenge was to create a gift. I have used this theme to create a little gift box. I have used one PB image on the top of the box. I have then attached a ribbon so that the box can be pulled open to reveal a further PB image on the inside. I'm not sure if these photographs do the box justice but I am sure that you get the general idea.

This is the box closed:

This is the box open:

Papertake Weekly Challenge

2009-04-13T13:10:00.002+01:00

A lovely sketch on Papertake Weekly Challenge. I have used my lovely Daisy and Dandelion stamps and stickers for this one.

This is for the Birds

2009-04-13T11:33:00.001+01:00

This weeks challenge on Stamptacular Sunday Challeng is entitled "This is for the Birds". Now, bird stamps are not something that I have a great deal of but I found these little cuties in my Daisy and Dandelion sets.

Nursery Rhymes

2009-04-12T14:14:00.002+01:00

Over on Crafts 4 U this months lottery theme was Nursery Rhymes. I am very late in getting this ATC made for the winner, but again, better late than never. My nursery rhyme was of course "The Owl and the Pussy Cat".

Stamptacular Sunday Challenge

2009-04-11T22:11:00.002+01:00

Well, better late than never. I have managed to get this card done for my friends new baby which is due any day and finish it in time to enter the first challenge on Stamptacular Sunday Challenge. The theme was New Beginnings and it has to include some form of stamping. I managed to get this cute little Forever Friends new baby stamp and it fitted in quite nicely with this theme.

PaperTake Weekly Challenge

2009-03-29T18:35:00.002+01:00

After a very hectic week I have finally managed to get an hour to make a card. I really liked this weeks sketch over on Papertake Weekly Challenge - simple but quite striking.

Sketch Saturday

2009-03-22T17:35:00.003Z

I found this weeks Sketch Saturday sketch quite a challenge. I decided to stay away from stamping for a change and created this lovely little toadstool house from a template I found lurking in the cupboard.

Friday Sketchers

2009-03-22T17:32:00.002Z

A lovely sketch over on Friday Sketchers. I have used some of the smaller stamps on one of the Daisy and Dandelion sets to create this image. I have then use a variety of pink papers for the layering.

Feelin Fruity

2009-03-22T17:25:00.002Z

The theme on Papertake Weekly Challenge was to use something edible on your card. I rumaged around in a box of embellishments and found these two cute buttons; one apple and one bananas. I have tried to make the colour scheme of the card fit with the buttons.

A Spoon Full of Sugar

2009-03-16T14:52:00.002Z

There was a lovely sketch to follow on A Spoon Full of Sugar and it involved some stitching. I have attempted the stitching and I am pleased with the effect that it has created. I am not sure about the colour scheme though.

Colour Create - Orange, Yellow and Green

2009-03-13T17:34:00.003Z

A lovely colour challenge on Colour Create last Sunday - Orange, Yellow and Green. The added bit to the challenge was to try and make something other than a card. Well, I thought about it for a while and deided to use some felt to make a bouquet of flowers for my Mum for Mothers Day. I then decided to carry the colour scheme on into the pot to stand them in. This has been a real challenge for me but I am very happy with the finished product.

Spring into Life

2009-03-10T16:53:00.003Z

I have produced three ATCs for this months Crafts 4 U colour swap. The colours were "Spring Colours" which is open to a range of interpretation. I chose to use yellow, orange, green and pink along with pale blue and lilac to reflect all the colours that nature is starting to produce in my garden. I have also used the Serendipity Embossing Technique which I discovered from Sonia's blog. You can see the tutorial here.

Penny Black Saturday Challenge

2009-03-03T16:51:00.003Z

And finally for today (I think), the title on this weeks Penny Black Saturday Challenge was "Something to eat". I have used this cute stamp of three mice sharing a cake and then added two more cakes at the top. I have used some Forever Friends backing paper because it fitted the title nicely.

Friday Sketchers

2009-03-03T16:47:00.002Z

A very simple but effective sketch on Friday Sketchers this week. Again, I have been able to use my new stamps, this time "Bubbles".

Colour Create - Blue and Bown

2009-03-03T16:44:00.001Z

Blue and Brown are not colours I would naturally put together, but it works. I have been able to use my new Daisy and Dandelion stamps that arrived in the post this morning. They really are lovely. The card is for this weeks Colour Create challenge.

Two Challenges in one

2009-03-03T11:56:00.003Z

I have combined the colour theme on Papertake Weekly Challenge (Orange, Pink and Brown) with the sketch on Sketch Saturday to create this card. I am beginning to feel braver working with stronger colours from taking part in these challenges.

Crafts 4 U Forum

2009-03-03T11:53:00.002Z

The theme for this months lottery on Crafts 4 U is "Fun and Games". I have used a mini deck of cards that I got in a cracker on this ATC.

Children's Book Characters

2009-03-03T11:49:00.003Z

At my local ATC swap group the theme on Saturday was children's book characters. These are the 5 that I chose.

A-Z of Techniques

2009-02-25T21:54:00.003Z

I haven't posted for a few days as I have been away visiting friends who live near Geneva. We had a lovely time in the snow and Maddie really enjoyed sledging.

Anyway, I have finally unpacked and managed to do a little bit of crafting this evening. These are my ATCs for the DoCrafts A-Z of Techniques swap. For C I have done chalking and for D I chose to use die-cuts.

Sketch Saturday

2009-02-17T13:25:00.002Z

I have used this weeks sketch on Sketch Saturday to create a birthday card for my Husband. I have used shades of Red and White to fit in with his teams colours.

Penny Black Saturday Challenge

2009-02-16T20:22:00.003Z

Another lovely sketch to work with on Penny Black Saturday Challenge. I have used the sketch to create a set of ATCs with the theme of romance for an upcoming swap on Crafts 4 U. I love these hedgehogs. They are really cute.

Friday Sketchers

2009-02-16T16:32:00.002Z

There was a lovely sketch on Friday Sketchers this week. It inspired me to create this card. The backing paper is Joanna Sheen; not sure where the rest came from.

Two for the price of one!

2009-02-15T15:51:00.003Z

I have managed to combine two challenges into one card. This card has doodling on it for the Doodle Doo challenge on A Spoonful of Sugar, and uses the Red, White and Blue colour theme on Colour Create.

PaperTake Weekly Challenge

2009-02-15T15:48:00.002Z

There was a lovely sketch on Papertake Weekly this week. I have created this card using a range of purples and lilacs and a lovely Penny Black stamp.

Red and Black

2009-02-09T17:57:00.001Z

This months colour swap on Crafts 4 U is Red and Black. I really struggled for inspiration on this one until my other half said "Dennis the Menace"!

Sketch Saturday

2009-02-08T09:35:00.002Z

And finally... for now anyway... There was a lovely sketch on Sketch Saturday yesterday. I had fun with this one and decided to use some Golden Oldie decoupage sheets that I had. I stuck with the Romance theme as well.

Penny Black Saturday Challenge

2009-02-08T09:31:00.002Z

The theme was this weeks Penny Black Saturday Challenge was Romance. You can use any layout you want as long as there is at least one Penny Black image there somewhere. I love these cute little hedgehogs.

Cute Card Thursday

2009-02-08T09:25:00.002Z

The theme for this weeks Cute Card Thursday challenge was to use metal somewhere on the card. I had a dig through my craft stash and found some metal embelishments and some wire words. I coloured Tilda with whispers markers (using them as watercolours) and added a range of green papers for the background layers.

Valentines ATCs

2009-02-06T16:04:00.002Z

I just thought I would share these ATCs that I have made this afternoon. They are for my fortnightly swap that originated at Craft Central in Bicester. Now we just meet at the Garden Centre and have a cuppa, a chat and a swap.

Spoonful of Sugar Challenge 37

2009-02-06T11:18:00.002Z

I had partly made this card yesterday and have managed to finish it off this morning. This is for Challeng 37 over on A Spoonful of Sugar. I have used a variety of blue papers, both patterned and plain, added Tilda so that she is sitting on the edge of the paper, and added a simple greeting so that this card could be used for a variety of occasions.

And still it keeps snowing...

2009-02-06T09:59:00.002Z

I am absolutely stunned to get another day off work due to the weather. Not that I'm complaining...
Anyway, I managed to get one card completed yesterday. This is for the Papertake Weekly Challenge where the theme is Hearts and Flowers. I rediscovered an old favourtite of mine - Iris Folding - at a craft afternoon that I went to on Wednesday, and decided that I could use that technique to create this card.

Snow

2009-02-05T09:43:00.002Z

Well I have my first "snow day" since I started teaching (13 years) and I have had alovely morning. Maddie and I went out first thing and built a snowman. Maddie was not too impressed with the cold however, and moaned most of the time. I was determined that she should have her picture taken as we don't get much snow in Bicester. Hopefully Maddie will sleep later as she has been up most of the night and I may be able to get some crafting done.
Here is our snowman.

Sketch Saturday

2009-02-02T12:17:00.003Z

I have used this weeks sketch to create a Get Well card for a friend. I have used a combination of Lilacs, pinks and greens and, of course, my new best friend Tilda.

Two Challenges in one

2009-02-01T11:30:00.002Z

Well, I have finally discovered Tilda.
What a cutie!
I have just bought myself three Tilda stamps and I absolutely adore her. I decided to use her to complete two challenges in one this morning. Firstly, I have used the sketch from Friday Sketchers to create the layout of my card. Secondly, I have used the colour scheme from Colour Create, a new Sunday Challenge blog. This weeks colours were pink, brown and green. The "extra" element was to use butterflies if you wished, so I decided to use some tiny Penny Black butterfly stamps. Tilda's jumper is a pale green, but hasn't shown up too well on the scanner.

Penny Black Saturday Challenge

2009-01-31T18:08:00.002Z

I am a little later posting this than I had intended, but I guess that's the joy of having a toddler in the house. This week on the Penny Black Saturday Challenge the theme is to make a "Circle" card.
This is my attempt.

PaperTake Weekly Challenge

2009-01-26T21:43:00.003Z

I have just completed this weeks Paper Take Weekly Challenge. This was a lovely sketch and one that I have enjoyed working with. I have used some Forever Friends papers. They don't show up too well on the picture.

Sketch Saturday

2009-01-25T14:16:00.002Z

I feel as if I have been a real busy bee over the last 24 hours. This is my next effort for today - Sketch Saturday sketch #35. I have made this card for my friend whose first baby is due in April. The image is from a Groovy Chick stamp set and I like the combination of lilacs and lime green.

Blog Candy

2009-01-25T10:10:00.002Z

Over on Crafty Coo's Blog there is some lovely Blog candy up for grabs. Pop over and have a look. It is open until 12 noon on Thursday 29th January.

Penny Black Saturday Challenge

2009-01-25T09:59:00.001Z

This week on Penny Black Saturday Challenge the theme was "Frame It". You could use any PB stamp, any layout, just as long as somewhere on your card there was a frame. Hidden away in the depths of my craft stash I remembered that I had some clear sticky frames, so I dug them out and used one for this card. The cute stamp was one that I bought yesterday.

PaperTake Weekly Challenge

2009-01-24T21:57:00.003Z

This week the Papertake Weekly Challenge was to use 3 shapes on your card. This is my attempt - I have used a rectangle, a circle and triangles. The stamp is one that I picked up from a car boot sale a few years ago but this is the first time that I have used it. I'm not confident using patterned papers but I really like this one.

A-Z of Techniques

2009-01-24T13:10:00.002Z

I have signed up to take part in the DoCrafts Monthly A-Z of techniques swap.
This is a real step out of my comfort zone. These two ATCs are both new techniques to me. The first one is... A is for Alcohol Inks. I have only used Alcohol Inks once before but I am pleased with the variation in the colours. The second one is... B is for Bleaching. Again, this is something that I have read about and seen other people do, but never something I have done myself. My kitchen now stinks of bleach, but again I am pleased with the result.

Crafts 4 U Forum

2009-01-19T19:55:00.011Z

I had hoped to post these much earlier but technology got the better of me and I have spent the last two hours trying to get my scanner to work. Anyway, finally...

I have made three ATCs for the Crafts 4 U January colour swap which is Green and Turquoise...

I have also made this Music themed ATC for the monthly lottery...

And these Vintage ones for the Januray swap...

Penny Black Saturday Challenge and Sketch Saturday Challenge

2009-01-12T11:43:00.002Z

I have managed to combine two challenges this week - The Penny Black Challenge was to use Pink and Brown whilst the Sketch Saturday was a lovely sketch.
I enjoyed creating this one. Pink and Brown are not colours that I would naturally put together but I am pleased with the result.

Sketch Saturday

2009-01-10T08:24:00.002Z

There was a lovely sketch on last weeks Sketch Saturday Blog. I used the sketch to create 4 ATCs. The images are of course from Penny Black.

PaperTake Weekly Challenge

2009-01-10T08:16:00.002Z

This weeks challenge on PaperTake Weekly was "Seeing Spots". Whilst sorting out a loud of old magazines over the last week I came across this set of freebie papers which lended itself quite nicely to this challenge.

Penny Black Saturday Challenge

2009-01-10T08:03:00.002Z

I have finally managed to get round to completing last weeks Penny Black Challenge last night. The challenge was to use "embossing" on your card design. I have used dry embossing on the panels behind the stamped image. The image of course had to be a Penny Black image and I think this little hedgehog is a real sweetie.

Now for something completely different...

2008-12-23T14:02:00.001Z

I have managed to break away from the Christmas preparations and have made a few bits and pieces for gifts. First of all I have made a clock for my eldest step-daughter. I hope she likes it. And secondly I have made a necklace for my mum. These are both "new" techniques and crafts for me, but I am really pleased with the results.

Gift Tags

2008-12-15T15:22:00.002Z

I thought that I would share these gift tags with you. I have made them using a technique that I saw on Tim Holtz's blog. I stamped on to black card and then embossed the text using clear embossing powder. I then painted over the card using gold/silver acrylic paints. Before the paint had properly dried I wiped it off the text using a paper towel allowing the black to show through from underneath. I then added the holly leaves and berries (metalic red brads). Finally I punched a hole and added an eyelet.