What a month....

Hi all,

Where do I start? Not a lot has happened since I was last here, but time has just zoomed by. Here I am near the last days of August and not much to show for it. I have been busy working and then Sonny and I went visiting family for a week. I have also been crafting but cannot show all as it is a secret!

Here are some things that I can show. First up is a wedding card, I started this sometime in July but finished it in August.

 

I embossed some cream linen effect card and distressed it with Antique Linen distress ink, wrapped some green ribbon on the bottom, then mounted it onto gold card which I have edged with Martha Stewart Scallop dots punch. I mounted all this on to a square kraft card base. The image I used was a Pink Petticoat image, I left this plain except for highlighting the flowers with pink and green pencil and pink Sukura pen, I mounted this at an angle onto the card, just for effect.

Recipe:
Card base: KraserKraft square base 13.5x13.5cm (5.31"x5.13")
Gold card: Stash
Ribbon: Lidle's Christmas Ribbon pack
Image: Pink Petticoat "Lola Rose big day"
Embossing Folder: Provocraft D'vine swirl
Colouring Mediur: Pencils and Sukura Pen, Ink - Ranger Distressed Ink "Antique Linen"

Second, is a baby card.

For some reason there has been a lot of boy babies born this year. It seems to be a ratio of 3:1, boys to girls around here. Pity all the girls in about 20 yrs time! lol.

I printed out a giraffe, coloured it using Promarkers and cut it out. I highlighted the mane, tail and hooves using Anitas glossy accents. I mounted it onto blue core'dination card stock, Mother Nature elements collection, - love the colours in this pack - and distressed the edges with tumbled glass distress ink, then corner punched diagonal corners to soften the image. I used the same core'dination cardstock to layer onto a white card, onto this I layered some contrasting blue Papermania "Sweet Nothing" paper one vertically and one horizontally I inked all the edges using the same distress ink just to pull them all together. I mounted the giraffe onto this and added some card candy in contrasting pale yellow. 

Recipe:
Card Base: White Greeting cards 12.7x17.8cm (5"x7")
Backing Paper: Core'dinations "Super Assortments" Elements Mother Nature
Designer Paper: Papermania "Sweet Nothings"
Ink: Ranger Distressed Ink "Tumbled Glass"
Image: Google
Embellishments: Card Candy


Hope you like,

Summer Time - What?!

What does summer time mean to you?

Long hot sunny days, children playing in the garden, going for walks in the long grass (don't let the farmers see you or there will be trouble) eating breakfast, lunch and dinner outside on the patio - well if it does, lucky you.

For us it is trying to dry wet outdoor clothes inside for 13 months in a row. Watching the tide coming and going from the inside of rain drenched windows. Eating breakfast, lunch and dinner by the fire (okay that's a fib, but some times we wish the fire was on!)

Where did the summers that we had as children go to? Yes, even in Ireland we had sunshine and long dry days spent outside and eating meals sitting, on a tartan rug, on the grass in the garden. Along with Sunday trips to the seaside and trying to eat a 99 Ice Cream before it melted all down you hands or fell on the ground.

I understand that summer and winter weather has changed all over the world but I just wish it just dried up here for more than one day in a row!!  Well to be honest we did have a good week last week but this week is rain followed by more rain on top of rain. But as an Irish person I am entitled to have a rant about the weather, our national pastime!

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I made this card for a fellow PCP member who celebrated her birthday last week, I had to ensure she received the card before I posted here.

I used a white square blank card base.  I dry embossed some white card using a cuttlebug embossing folder. The yellow gingham paper is from a DoCrafts Me to You, Spring Chic paper pack. I stamped the papermania sentiment straight on to the backing paper after afixing to the card. The pink layer is from a paper pack that I have for ages - Papermania Sweet Nothings. Then the image is a freebie I got with a crafty magazine some time ago, it is a "Lili of the Valley" image, in fact there was a little pack of images ready to be coloured and used on cards, it is one of the best freebies I received in a crafty mag, each image is as gorgeous as the last. I coloured the image using colouring pencils, I need to get some decent skin coloured pencils. I sparkled up the flowers a little with Sukara gen pens

Recipe:
Designer paper: Docrafts - Me to You Spring Chic, and Papermania - Sweet Nothings
Embossing: Provo craft embossing folder
Die Cut: Xcut nesting set
Image: Lili of the Valley
Colour medium: Pencils, Sukara Gel Pens
Sentiment: Papermania
Miscellaneous: Ribbon - stash
                         Ink - Papermania


Hope you like,

Another Birthday Card - in green.

I love green, as some may know! It is such the colour of nature and it comes in so many hues. It is wonderful. And I like to think of myself as a down to earth type of person so green suites me, but I am sure others may not think so. lol but that's their opinion and who am I to argue with them.

But anyway.....

Yesterday was my sisters birthday, will not divulge a number, but will go as far as to say, she is an older sister. :)

It is a simple but effective card.

It is a tent shaped card base, using Pink Petticoat backing paper and the plain  paper is also from PP. This plain PP paper is embossed using a Provo Craft Roses folder. The white die cut shape is cut using an Xcut die then chalked lightly on top of this is a Rose image water coloured and glittered.   The sentiment is a papermania sentiment. On the backing paper I used Sukara glaze pen to highlight some of the circles just for effect and I wanted to do it!

Recipe:

Designer Paper: Pink Petticoat - Doodleicious Rainbow papers 3

Embossing Folder: ProvoCraft Roses folder.

Image: Stash

Sentiment: Papermania sentiment.

Colour medium: Ink - StazOn black - sentiment, papermania  pigment inks - Rose, Sukara Glaze clear pen,

Glitter: DoCraft -Glamour Dust

Challenges I am entering:
The Paper Shelter Challenge blog: #67 Going Dottie

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Other News in my Little World

This is what is happening in the fields across the road -  my BIL's land.

He is getting the grass cut for silage (food for cattle over wintering in the sheds), they look like mini black puddings!

 The grass is cut (like in right of the photo) then is "sucked" up and wrapped in black plastic via a machine on the back of a tractor.

It is fascinating watching it.

Yeah! I need to get a life. lol

Hope you like,

A card for a man in my life!

Morning all,

Today is my Fathers Birthday, "my old Dad", as he says himself.
One morning last year, the Queen was announcing the OBE's (Order of the British Empire) for the year when Dad announces, " I have an OBE" he clarified that by saying "Over Bloody Eighty!" :)

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This is the card I sent him for this year.

The panel on the left, is actually masking tape adhered to card, then inked up with different colour distressed inks. Once the ink was dried, I misted it with some Smooch Spritz just to give it a bit of a sheen. I really cased the idea for here but I did change the dimensions, I used a square Kraft card and just cut the front panel to suit me.

I mounted the inked panel onto cream card than on the front of the card. I die cut out two shapes in cream coloured card, I used the second shape, for the sentiment in the inside. D.A.D. is computer generated, I cut out the letters and coloured them with promarkers than mounted it onto the front of the card. I cut out a larger shape in dark blue and backed it on to the front panel.

I mounted designer paper, from a Papermania pack (I have it so long, I don't have the name of the pack), onto cream card and then onto the Kraft card. I stamped the sentiment onto the second cream die cut shape and mounted it onto the DP hiding it behind the large blue die cut shape.

Recipe:
Designer paper: Papermania.
Die Cut Paper: core'dinations - Super assortment.
Die Cut: Spellbinders Nestabilities - Labels 4
Distressed Inks: Ranger - spiced marmalade, rusty hinge, antique linen.
Sentiments: DAD computer generated, Happy Birthday - Papermania Sentiment.

Entering into:
Aud Sentiments Challenge Blog - Challenge #54 Dad Daddy Papa

A little Rant....

Spring has arrived here. After many months of having to dry clothes on clotheshorses by the radiator we can now hang them outside to dry. There is such a difference; between drying clothes by the radiators and drying them outside, there is such a fresh outdoors smell from them plus they seem so much softer while clothes dried inside are hard and smell.... well weird!

Now here is the rant; we live in the country, in hill sheep country. And this time of the year when the weather warms (a little) and there has being a few days of dry weather, out come the farmers and start burning the gorse on the hills and mountains. That in itself is okay- they are allowed BUT I have clothes on the clothes line and now they stink of smoke instead of nice fresh breeze dried freshness.This is 2 days in a row it has happened. :(  IT ANNOYS ME. Rant over.

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I have being tiding out my photo files and I have come across this card I made for my Grand-niece on her Christening day.

All the backing papers are from Pink Petticoat in pink. The image is from StitchyBear Design, it is lovely set for Christenings and such. Even though it is called Baby Girl, it could be used on boy baby cards also.  The only embellishment I used with this image, is some glue gel just to highlight the folds of the dress.  I used 2 of the fancy tags set when layering the sentiments. The sentiments themselves are computer generated. I cut out the main image and layering's with Nestibilities Labels 4. The panel on the left of the card is punched with a Martha Stewart punch. Behind it and around the second layer on the image,  I put a satin grey ribbon just for a bit of contrast.

Recipe:

Backing papers: Pink Petticoat.

Image: StitichyBear Digital Stamps.

Die Cuts: Nestibilitie Label 4, and Fancy Tags.

Ribbon: Local Haberdashery Store.

Gems: Papermania Adhesive Gem.

Punch: Martha Stewart - Scollop Dot.

Hope you like,

Magazine inspired.

Some time ago.............well, a long time ago, I decided to go through all my crafty magazines to get inspiration and ideas. My mojo had gone on an extended holiday and I needed some help in getting it to return. And return it did, yahoo!
Here is what I finished with my returned crafty mojo.

 The magazine I used for inspiration is Crafts Beautiful January 2012. It does not give a name for the fold but I would call it "accordion" fold.

 This was my first time making this card and it was a little time consuming but worth it in the end.  I will certainly be making it again.

Recipe:

Card: Stash

Backing Paper: Green dotty paper - Hot Diggiety Dog by Andrea Jayne

                          Solid Green paper - Download from Pink Petticoat

                          Yellow Card - DCWV Cardstock - Brights.

Image: Papermania- Retail Therapy.

Punch: MS Scallop Dots Border Punch.  

Die Cut: Nestabilities Oval and Scallop Ovals.

Embossing: Cuttlebug Swiss Dots embossing folder.

Colouring Medium: Colouring pencils.

Hope you like,



Back to earth with a bang.....

Well, tomorrow is the start of the school year. Summer is over and Sonny starts his final year in primary school, (please do not ask the equivalent years for other countries as I do not know, but he is 12 that may help)
Today we spent the morning cleaning his room, every week he changes his bed linen and vacuums the room but he never dusts or tidies under the bed or behind stuff. I think I am lucky that he does as much as he does. lol. I had wanted to do this all summer but he never wanted to, naturally, who wants to take their room apart and clean it during the holidays? So today had to be the day, the last day of hols. We had some words about it this morning so hubby and I started, but, eventually he came in little by little to help. Think he was afraid that we would throw out some things he wanted to keep. :) Going to bed tonight he was happy and said that his room smelt clean!
Tomorrow is back to alarm clocks, lunches and getting breakfasts, yep, back to work!

As usual the day before the schools re-open the weather clears up, today was no exception. We had a beautiful sunny warm day. The sky was blue as was the sea and even the breeze was balmy. It is days like today that remind me just how wonderful the place I choose to live in is.

Here is a simple and quick card that I would like to share with you all today.

I tore a square of white card stock than inked the edges with Distress ink. I stamped the lower part of the cardstock with a Waltzingmouse background stamp. The sentiment layer is also stamped with a Waltzingmouse stamp then cut out with Spellbinders Nestability Label 4 tag before layering this on the background I added some lace ribbon.  I then attached it to a square card blank. There is no "bling" on this card, I just wanted a quick and simple card but an elegant one.

Recipe:

Card Blank: Anita's square card blank

Dies: Nestabilities Label 4 Tags

Sentiment: Papermania

Ink: Whispers- Blue Azure and Tim Holtz Old Paper

Stamps: Waltzingmouse Pic-Nik Patterns and Very Vintage Labels No. 4

Ribbon: KaiserCraft - Lace Pack (Natural)

 
Hope you like,

Another Butterfly Card

A PCP friend has thrown down the gauntlet by suggesting that I update my blog! Well she is right. I know that I posted yesterday, but I really should post more often.

I said in a few post back that I was going to use some magazines that I bought as inspiration. All I did, so far, was to go through them and mark the pages that interested me, at least it is a start, now I just have to continue making the cards. lol

This card is NOT inspired by any of the magazines but by a blog post by Susan Raihala who owns Simplicity. Susan makes the most wonderful CAS cards and I have being lurking on her blog for some time. The following card is influenced by Susan.  Thank you Susan for you inspiration.

I cut an A4 card in half, length ways and folded it in two to make the long card blank. With the other half of the A4 sheet I cut a rectangle shape and using my Spellbinders Butterfly Shapeability set I cut and embossed a butterfly. I mounted this rectangle on to the most lovely colored and glittered paper, the photo or any photo I took, does not do this paper justice. It is a rich teal colour and so glittered. Its Yummy! While the butterfly was still in the die, I used embossing glue and sprinkled glamour dust on to it and let it dry.
I mounted the yummy paper on to the card blank, I then stamped the sentiment and glittered this also. Once the card was finished I added the butterfly on a 3D foam pad.

Recipe:

Card: A4 Card pack

Yummy Paper (lol):  DCWV Hippie Chic

Glitter: DecoArt Glamour Dust - Crystal

Dies: Spellbinders Butterfly Two Shapebilities

Sentiment: Papermania

Hope you like,

Magazine inspired 1

Here is my first Magazine inspired card. Yahoo! The magazine I got my inspiration from is "Cardmaking and Papercraft" issue 93. The card that influenced my "creation" was a wedding card but as I already pointed out in an earlier post, I do not have any weddings to go to this year so I changed it to a birthday card.  It is already in the post of a member of the Cara Craft Supplies forum Birthday Club.  Hope it got to her on time. :)

Recipe

Card Stock: Stash

Designer Paper: DCWV Cardstock Stack - Brights, Cosmo Cricket - Earlie Bird

Flower: Cosmo Cricket - Earlie Bird

Sentiment: Papermania - Sentiments

Chalks: Dovecraft Decorative Chalks - Pastel

Gems: Stash

Hope you like,

What I was doing while I was missing!

I entered my craft room one day with the idea of making some birthday cards that I needed for family members and this is what I made instead! A wedding card, even if I say so myself a lovely wedding card, but I don't have any weddings to go to this year!

Recipe:

Image - Download from Papercraft Inspirations
Colored - ProMakers
Ribbon - Martha Stewart
Die Cuts - Nestabilities Scallop Ovals
Bling - Glitter Dust,liquid pearls and glitter glue
Sentiment - Stamp Papermania "Love Jesse Edwards"

Hope you like,

Christmas cards galore....

Here are some other cards that I made for Christmas this year. I know I am late posting but "better late than never."

This card, I cased from Deneen of A Path of Paper . The backing paper is just plain navy paper, (doesn't look navy in photo but it is, trust me lol) and I stamped a snowflake background on to it with clear embossing ink. The "snowflakes" are made with 2 Fleur De Li's Shapeabilities, lining them up at a 90 degree angle to each other. In the first card, I did not cut out the centre of the shape but cut out the smaller pendant and layer it on top of the other pendants. (Does this make sense.lol) Than for the second card I did cut out the centre of the larger pendant, both card are quite pretty (even if I say so myself). I decorated them with Papermania's clear adhesive stones.

This is what I did with the inside of the cards. I printed out the sentiment and then cut it out using Spellbinders Fancy Tags set. I sponged some Tim Holtz "Broken China" ink while it was still in the die cut. I mounted it on to the centre of the inside of the card. I sponged the bottom corner using one of the snowflake shapeabilities as a stencil, just to give the card a little extra.

Hope you like,