One for my Great Niece...

Hello Friends

My Nephew and his wife recently had a beautiful little girl who they named Autumn Rose. So here is my little card I made to celebrate..... 

I cut the onesies and washing line with my Silhouette.  Background stripey paper was from the Snippets drawer.  The white background is plain card which I punched on both edges with my EK Success punch and I added a strip of washi tape, which is actually pink, I could not resist adding a little teddy button to the bottom corner and instead of the little flowers that were included in the Silhouette cut I added some little heart embellies.  I also added the little wooden pegs.

Off to the Snippets Playground with this one after I have put it in a plastic bag as it is still very wet here.  Got my wellies and souwester on too!!  At least the ducks will be happy!

Now what time is the rehearsal for the Nativity Play again?  Where is my tea towel......

Hettie

Rudolph Day - May 2015

Hello there

The best laid plans and all that.......

This past month has gone at such a pace that I completely forgot about getting cards ready for 25th of the month.  So Monday afternoon I sat down and made some cards and ruled that as many of the parts had to come out of my Christmas basket of shame.  Let me tell you this basket is overflowing with Snippets, embellishments, ribbons, and all manner of Christmas things.  It really needs to be cleared and so I have made the decision that if there is anything left in there by September then I will be giving them to my neighbour for the Brownies.  Some of the stuff is so old and it is time to get rid of.

I completed seven on Monday which I thought was good going for me, and on Tuesday evening I completed another three which means that for the first time this year I managed to complete my target of ten per month!!!  Yeay!!!!!!

So here they all are....

Using Dreamweaver stencil, stencil paste and microbeads onto black cardstock (I did this last year but never used it) I then cut around the image and mounted it with a lot of glue onto the glitter cardstock Snippet (having put it under a heavy book overnight to make the glue stick).  I wrapped silver twin, tied a Snippet of recycled ribbon and tied on two bells (from Christmas crackers) and mounted it all onto a card which came from a kit from QVC many years ago.

Chipboard from chit pads used in work using Tim Holtz die borrowed from buddy and inked with Festive Berries DI, brushed with Kiwi Perfect Pearls and then stamped with Tim Holtz flourish stamp.  Snippets of patterned papers and Poinsettia cut from TH die with brad in the centre.  All mounted onto card, some faux stitching and another completed.

The background piece was made as a mock up for a Christmas Album two years ago.  I chopped it up to make this panel.  Susan Wilson (NBUS) die cut with Snippets and layered.  Some ribbon to tie a double bow.  Hero Arts stamp for the sentiment and mounted on a Snippet and pearls added.  No 2 completed.

Background paper Bo Bunny and just enough to paper two cards.  Punched the corner with Martha Stewart punch and added some faux stitching.  The Trees were stamped with Stampin Up stamp (NBUS yet had it for ages) and then punched.  The trunks and pot were from the same set.  Embossed with clear embossing powder.  Sentiment stamp is TH.  XCut die cuts, again from Snippets. All stamping is Pine Needles DI. Added some shimmery die cut stars (SSS) and a teeny bow.

Same details as above, but I chomped the corners with Memory Keepers chomper.

 

This background piece is soooo old I am not sure it was even this century when I bought it!  I found a piece of kraft card looking lonely so I cut it in half, chomped the corners and punched a hole using my SU 1/2" punch.  I took another Snippet and punched a 3/4" punch and made a hole ring thingie.  Stamped a TH stamp and then ran it through the B/S with an embossing folder.  Die cut some stars with a K&Co Snippet added it on then added schtickles.  The rosette was taken off one of my Tags and I added another punched circle.  I took my TH chit chat stickers, ribbon and another for the tin.

 

Similar to the last one, only I used a different Snippet. 

And now for the recycling of my Christmas Tags. I used a freebie piece for the background (I think it is Docrafts), chomped the corners and then added the Tag, having first of all added a TH word card underneath.  I took the original paper bow off as it had got bashed in the basket and replaced it with a punchboard bow with a button in the centre. 

 

 

I tried putting this tag onto a background piece but nothing worked.  Whatever I used didn't work so I just plonked it onto the kraft card, chomped the corners and added faux stitching.

And last but not least here is my last card for today.  Thanks for sticking with me so far.  Another I made for the Funkie Junkie Tags Challenge.  This is pretty heavy so it will be a hand-delivered to the recipient.  Only thing I have added is a Snowflake die cut from the Snippets basket and a word card from Tim Holtz.

 

I thought I would share a photo of my lickle Dobby.  Does he look comfy or what?  Bless him.  Some of you may know he has been poorly having had a fall down our stairs, but he is slowly getting better and in the last few days he has been more of his usual self.  Only thing is we now have to carry him down the stairs to save him straining his shoulder joints.

 

Right then.  That is it from me.  Thank you for sticking with me.  Off to join Mo at the Rudolph Day Challenge, Miss Di at the Snippets Playground (Miss is away at the moment on a school reunion so I am guessing there is some mischief going on behind the bike shed with the usual suspects), Cuttlebug Mania as there is plenty of bling on these, and I am joining Hazel at Hazelnuts.

 

Have a great weekend.

 

Hettie

Happy Birthday Mo...

Hello 

Gosh did you hear that noise last night?  It was a loud whoosh as the weekend just skated past!!  It was a good weekend at Chez Hettie but very quick.  Anyone know where that shiny thing in the sky has gone?

I have been meaning to share this card I made a little while ago for a certain friend of mine.  It took a fair while to get to the recipient so didn't share when I meant to.  

Background was made from swooshing some DIs onto my craft mat (can't for the life of me remember what colours exactly but if you need to know I will try and remember a little harder).  Then I sprayed some water and dabbed the card into it drying, and repeating.  

After the background was dry I took one of the colours and my favourite Tim Holtz stamp and stamped it.  The Sentiment is Hero Arts and was NBUS at the time!

Next flowers.  Now I know this person really likes flowers so cut several layers using a Sizzix die.  Coloured with more DIs before drawing "veins" in with Copics.   The camera has made the veins look quite stark but IRL they were a little muted.  

Out came my moulding mat and I set about making three different flowers just by moulding them differently in each  case.  I liked the look, though the card tried to split into layers so I must remember not to use that particular card again for this.  Some leaves which I coloured again with DI (Mowed Lawn - funny how I remember this one!) and then set about adhering the flowers to the background.

One envelope to match and I was ready to post the card over the water.

I used Snippets on this card so off to join the Snippets Playground.  

Have a great week, and if anyone sees the yellow shiny thing please put it back in the sky.

Thanks for calling by.

Hettie

Happy Birthday Jackie...

Hello there

 

I hope you have all had a wonderful Easter weekend. The weather here at Chez Hettie has been wonderful and I have enjoyed a great weekend, involving meeting with friends and spending quality time with Mr Hettie.

 

As the weather was so nice Mr Hettie wanted to open up the hives. Mine first and they were pretty happy to let us have a good look. However when it came to us looking at Mr Hettie's bees, they decided that enough was enough and stung me through my jeans. I am sorry to say that I am still suffering with my right thigh burning, swollen and with a very large blister forming.  I had about 8 stings in that one.  Little critters!

 

Right then, onto today's post. I recently dipped my toe into the world of Brushes. My excuse is that I am going on a workshop soon where we can use them and wanted to make a card for my friend Jackie ...

I Spritzer some paper and used two blue shades of brushos and I sprayed water in my mini mister with some white perfect pearls. I hope you can see the shimmer. I then ran the paper, once dried, through my die cutter with Sizzix hexagon die, as Jackie is a quilting friend.

I used Snippets to make the tag and flowers using TH dies and flourish using Tonic die. I stamped a SU image on the tag with DI and used a McGill punch to make the little flowers.

 

Some pearls, Hero Arts HB sentiment and I was finished. Jackie was pleased with it and surprised to learn I had made it.

 

Thanks for calling by. Off to join the Snippets Playground. Hopefully there will be some chocolate left. I am also joining Cuttlebug Mania as they are looking for tags.  Have a great week.

 

Hugs

 

Hettie

March Rudolph Day....just...

Hello There!

I am very nearly out of time to join in with the March Rudolph Day and am getting in there with a sideways slide and crash!!  Things have been a bit hectic at Chez Hettie and wonderfully topped off with our internet failing us.  Apparantly BT think it is quite acceptable for the internet to be dropped and out of action up to 5 times in a day with the result that our internet is unavailable for 23 out of 24 hours!!!!  So I hope they don’t mind if I reduce their payment to 23/24^ths this month!!  I think not!

So here we go. 

Last week I received this NBUS stamp from Lawn Fawn.  It “fell into my basket” whilst I was buying another die and stamp set that my friend Darnell MADE me buy.  These are my first Lawn Fawn products and so far I likie.  I have not found many retailers in the UK and the one I did find only had the stamps I wanted…no die.  So I wandered to their site and discovered you can order direct and what’s more I could use Paypal so no setting up an account for which I will forget which email I have used and what password.  Result! They were very quick and I was able to make three cards to join in with the Challenge. 

I can see this die being use a lot this year. 

All the papers came out of my Christmas Snippets basket so that is a little less stuff in there! It also means I can join in with the Easter Egg Hunt at the Snippets Playground this week.

Stamps used are Tim Holtz and Hero Arts and I used WOW Sparkling Snow embossing powder with Versamark.  The Bakers Twine is Papermania and so is the paper - VOS.   Punch is EK Success.

Phew!  Glad I got that in in time.  Thanks for calling by.  Don’t forget to stick some lead in your shoes to stop you from blowing away.  It is very windy in the UK right now.  My Girls are not happy about the wind, I can tell you!

Be safe!

Hettie

Happy Mothering Sunday

Hello There! 

Hasn't today been a glorious day weatherwise?  I was lucky enough to spend some time with my Girls today sitting on the bench whilst they had a roam around.  It was lovely to see them enjoying the Spring sunshine and having a rootle around looking for fresh worms.  Mr Hettie kindly cleaned the coup out and just let me enjoy my time with the Girls.  We noticed that Tracey was a little slower than normal and not her usual self, although she did come to me for a cwtch and we had a long chat.  So glad we did as when I went out a little later she had toddled off over the Rainbow Bridge.  She was the last of the first set of rescue hens that we had and we are guessing 5 or 6 years old.  We had her nearly 4 years. Bon voyage Tracey.  We will miss your wonky tail feather and I will miss our cwtches.

Right onto today's post.  I wanted to share with you the Mothering Sunday cards I made for both mine and Mr Hettie's mothers last week...

I made the card using some Bazzill cardstock and then cut the filigree piece using my Silhouette.  This was a NBUS design that I downloaded.   It took me a few attempts as the cardstock was quite thick.  However, persaver is my middle name (amongst others!) and I set the cutter to double cut and it cut it perfick.  

Then I looked to find some patterned paper to cut the butterfly with...I did not want to use the one that was cut with the filigree background.  I managed to find a Snippet of Crafty Individuals card and just about squeezed two butterflies out.  I then took my NBUS Martha Stewart Butterfly punch and punched an extra butterfly for the centre.  Once it was all assembled I took the Liquid Perfect Pearls and applied liberally. 

My Mum loved it so much she asked me if I would make something similar as invitations to their BIG Anniversary later this year.  However, she wants to embroider some butterflies to add in the centre.  I will share those with you when the time comes. 

Now the sharp eyed among you will realise that I have used the same butterfly punch before, however, the punch was totally knackered dull and not cutting properly.  So I hunted around for a while trying to get a good price.  Eventually I found a brand new one on a famous auction site at a bargain price so Paypal helped me out.  I haven't got rid of the old one yet.  Thinking it would make a good paperweight.  Incidentally I have tried every possible remedy to sharpen it.  

Right, one more think I need to do now is to welcome Twinkle Toes as my latest Follower.  Thank you so much.

Off to join in the fun and frolics at the Snippets Playground as well as Darnell's Playhouse and Mrs A's Butterfly Farm.  Cor that is going to be a busy half hour!!

Thanks for calling by.  Please leave me a message so I know you have been.

Hettie

Happy Birthday Ann

Hello there

I had snow this morning on the way to work!  What was THAT all about.  I knew it was forecast for the guys up north but since when has South Wales been in the northern part of the country.  Pretty cold it is too today!

Never mine ey.  It is always warm in blogland!

I wanted to share a birthday card I made for a dear friend of mine.  So often she asks for me to make cards for her to send (remember my cows wedding card)  and it was nice to make her one and a 70th one at that!  

It is quite a trick colour for the camera to get right, as with a lot of purple shades.  It was more of a purple grey and some of these cards are more blue.  The photo below is the nearest I think, though the pale blue is not quite right.  You get the drift though.

I seem to be into flowers right now and making my own.  These are quite simply Tonic petal pairs punches (some of the first punches I owned) which I then poked a brad through several layers, then spritzed them and scrunched them over to make them as compact as possible.  Once they had dried off I just pulled them out a bit to created the buds.  Simples.

The dies and embossing folder are all from a set I had before Christmas that I hadn't used so were NBUS.  I kid you not, the embossing folder is a PITA if you have not got an A4 die cutter as it is designed so that you have one background sheet.  Maybe a nice fairy will be kind and deliver the new Sizzix one that is coming out!  Yeah right!!

To compensate for the not being able to use one sheet I added some silver behind, as well as some silver Ivy and Sizzix letters.  My favourite (and only) Memory Box butterflies, a ribbon bow and a spritz of Shimmer Mist and hey presto Ann's card was done.  

I used a plethora of Snippets on here and butterflies with ribbon so I am fluttering by the Snippets Playground and Mrs A's Butterfly Challenge.

See you later folks.  Keep warm and safe.

Hettie

Happy Birthday Rachel...

Hello there

What a windy weekend weather we have had!  We have still to find the Girls' poop bucket, though I have seen bits of straw around which were in there!!  Ho Hum!!  I hope everyone is ok and not lost anything worse than a poop bucket!

I was having a look at my draft posts and I came across this one which I have not shared with you. It was for my good buddy Rachel.  I renewed my membership of a certain Craft TV site and received the tartan papers so this was their first outing.  With my money back I bought the Tonic die set and this was their first outing also. 

The pink background is some star paper which I inked around the edges with some DI to make it deeper.  Some TH tissue tape, a sheet of my Czech book and some torn tartan paper.  I then cut the Tonic border die which I layered on some Vanilla SU card.  I used a frame which was in my Snippets tin as well as the centre piece which I stamped using SU stamps.

The flower is a SU stamp and punch which I embossed with clear embossing powder.  A Snippet of ribbon stamped with HB stamp and tied with gold thread.  .

The Penny Black Smile die was cut several times and layered up then smooshed with some DI., some SU flutterbies and hey presto Rachel's card was complete.

Off to take this over to the Snippets Playground and also Darnell's NBUS Challenge as there are both Snippets and NBUS involved in the making of this card.

Have a great week and wrap up warm with heavy shoes on..I hear we have cold wind coming our way!

Hugs

xx

On the First Day of December......A New Christmas Album for 2014

Hello there!

Happy 1st December to you all.  Can you believe we are here already?  Where did the last 11 months go then?

As my lovely Friends and Followers may remember, for the last few years I have made Christmas Albums into which I post either a photograph or journalling for each day of December.  This year is no exception....

Here are the front covers of my 2014 Christmas Album.  I have used a pattern from Paper Phenomonon which I purchased around 3 years ago with the intention of making up into an album and so this year this is what I used.  The metal corners are Tim Holtz.

The main papers are MME which I had at a bargain price from Hobbycraft some time last year.  There was a pack and a few odd sheets with no price on.  I asked the assistant how much they were and surprisingly she asked me how much I would be willing to pay.  I told her £5 off the cuff and the Supervisor agreed to my offer!  There were around 12 sheets of doublesided, glittered card, a sheet of tags etc and previously I had paid around £1.50 a sheet!  Tee Hee!

Next I had to think about a closure.  Whilst racking my brain and looking around I remembered I had some clasps from Zutter.  I sprayed the leather with a mix of Red Pepper and Plum Ranger Colourwash, inked around it with some Vintage Stain DI and run it through my B/S with a Tonic embossing folder.  Job done!

The ribbon I bought some time ago from a store in my local town.  It is straight and even only every time I open and shut the album it moves.  I didn't want it stuck down until the front is finished, when I know it will not move!

Now for the inside....

This is the centre of the front with six flap pockets which hold tags.  You will notice that they are not overly decorated yet.  This is because I want to embellish as I go along depending on the photographs/journalling that occur.

Left front inside cover.  A flap which when opened there is another set of pockets.

Right side inside front cover.

Left flap opened which shows the pockets.  Also you can see some of the other papers I have used such as Stampin Up, Basic Gray and Bazzill.  Some of which are Snippets from previous albums.

And here is the central panel...

Punched around with a Martha Stewart punch.  I do hope we get some snow.  The 2014 is a decoration which I have bought and hope to incorporate, but not sure how yet.

And with the flap lifted, more space on which to journal and add photographs on.  

With the tags...

And here is the reverse of the whole album,..I love how shimmery this paper is.  I have also used some Treasure Gold but will add more as I work on this album.

I have used an absolute plethora of papers both new and Snippets from previous years.  I can see some Bo Bunny paper in there too.  Punches used are EK Success (the smaller brown one is NBUS from US), Martha Stewart, Some of the MME paper is from two years ago and was 6x6 paper.  I do like the mix of sizes of the same papers. Corner chomper by We R Memory Keepers.Tan cardstock from The Art Shop and also the chipboard.  The only new thing I bought for this album are the little owl embellishments and the reindeer ones too, which I have not actually used yet, but no doubt will very soon!

Off to share this with the Playground folk as there are a plethora of Snippets used on this album.  I permanently keep a basket of Christmas Snippets so they are easy to find and ready to use.

I thank you for coming over and look forward to reading your comments.

Hettie

x