Madcap Manor

 Well, it's a beautiful summer's day here in S-E Hertfordshire, the sun is shining and the sky is blue.  A perfect day to talk about Christmas! Yes, we have a new Challenge at  The Holly and Ivy Christmas Challenge  where Anything Christmas Goes. I used  James - Wrapped in Tinsel  by LotV - I have him as an unmounted stamp, but I'm glad to say that he's still available as a digi. The papers are from a VERY old pad by Dovecraft which is now out of print.  I matted the snowflake layer onto another paper from the pad and then a scrap of purple pearlised card.  The ribbon is from my stash and the sentiment is an old one from Simon Says Stamp.  Finally I added  Plum Pudding Nuvo Drops  for a bit of shine and Icicle Stickles to the tinsel on the image. Check out the Challenge blog and my teamies' inspiration! Thanks for looking and take care! love Mags B x

  Hi there! We have a new Challenge at My Time to Craft and our theme is Around the House. Think kitchens, living rooms, conservatories, bookshelves, flowers in a vase, furniture, a fireplace, reading a book, playing a computer game or Scrabble...   As an ex-Public Librarian who lives in a house with bookshelves everywhere, I went with reading and books!   My first card uses a Lili of the Valley coloured image called Story Time.   Such a cute scene! The background paper is a scrap from a Nitwit Collections set. I see that now they are producing paper pads in collaboration with Crafter's Companion, as well as their own digi bundles.   My second card uses a stamp set by Simon Says Stamp called 'To Thine Own Shelf' which is sadly unavailable. I used various brightly-coloured dye inks to stamp a very graphic design. I'm very good at smudging designs like this, being too impatient to let the ink dry properly, but this time I did it all right...

  Hello, my lovelies! TGIF! We have a new Challenge at My Time to Craft which is New Home. I have made a mini-slimline card. The patterned paper came from an old First Edition pad, and has a canvas texture. I coloured one of the houses with Copics and added an old sentiment from Lili of the Valley. A very simple card - it took longer to find the paper and sentiment stamp than it did to make the card! I really must sort my craft hovel again!  Go and see the sweet inspiration that my teamies have posted on the Challenge blog!  Thanks for looking and stay well.  love Mags B x

Whaddaya mean, 'Christmas Transport'? At least, that's what I thought when I saw what today's challenge at My Time to Craft Christmas was to be.   Well, with a little guidance from my lovely teamies I understood that it means: Santa's Sleigh; Sledges; Trucks bearing Christmas Trees; Snowboards; Skis; maybe even the Three Ships that come sailing by on Christmas Day, on Christmas Day. (I love that carol!) I went with a sledge. This adorable image is by Penny Black (unfortunately it may be out of print, as I can't find it online.) I coloured the sweet hedgies with Copics, and added Diamond Stickles to their hats and the snow. The holly paper is an old digi-paper from Lili of the Valley which is also out of print, but check out their pretty background digi papers!  The chipboard sentiment came from a magazine several years ago, the green script matches the background paper very well. The red and gold ribbon is from my stash.   Sledge across to our new Challe...

Hi, guys! It's time for another Challenge at Dream Valley and our theme is Our 4-Legged Friends.   Does anybody else start singing A Four-Legged Friend sung by Roy Rogers in the film 'Son of Paleface'? The film is an old-fashioned but very funny Western, starring Bob Hope and Jane Russell - she is so good in this, she out-rides, out-shoots and out-acts everyone else! An oldie but goodie. Anyway, here is my card, using AKV Giraffe by our awsome sponsor Bugaboo Stamps. I used snippets of papers from my scrap drawers for the background papers and added Love from Lizi in Grass Green Mirror. I backed an old Lili of the Valley circle sentiment stamp with green mirror cardstock by Tonic and finished with green gems from my stash.  We have a Design Call at the moment, open to experienced or new crafters alike.  Do check it out! We're a very friendly bunch! My teamies have made adorable animal cards to inspire you to join in the challenge!  Thanks for looking and st...

Exciting news! Our lovely Shell is setting up a new blog starting on January 15th called My Time to Craft Christmas! Go and see the details on today's post at My Time to Craft! where you can see what it's all about! DT applications welcome!  For today, we also have a seasonal challenge: Christmas Animals. I used a pre-coloured image from Lili of the Valley stamps which I've had for a long time. The backing paper, ribbon and sentiment are also old. I'm using up my stash! Unfortunately this image of the bear family is no longer available, but do check out the other adorable stamps on the site. And there's a SALE!  Thank you for your kind words about the quilt I made for my sister, I'm absolutely chuffed! Now I'm considering making one for my bro and sis-in-law! Sewing is as addictive as papercrafting!  Go and see my teamies' sweet creations on the Challenge blog, and check out the details of the new Christmas Challenge blog!  Thanks for looking...

  Hello, my dearios! I hope you are all keeping well. It's a grey, chilly day here in S-E Hertfordshire: winter is definitely on its way! But to cheer us all up there's a new Challenge at The Holly and Ivy Christmas Challenge !   I used a very, very old Stampendous stamp which is long out of print for my card.  (In fact, everything on the card, from the LotV papers to the image and sentiment are old!) O gold-embossed the Christmas tree and added tiny gems to the centres of the snowflakes.  I used a corner rounder on the image piece and the glitter mat. This really sparkles! Go and see what my teamies have been up to and join in the fun! Thanks for looking, and take care! love Mags B x

 It's a grey, cold, wet day! Time to wrap up warm, get into your craft space and make something Christmassy! Yes, we have a new Challenge at  The Holly and Ivy Christmas Challenge! I used an old pre-coloured image from Lili of the Valley.  This is Winter Fairy, and she is available as a digi stamp  Here. I used silver mirri card for my layers.  The snowy paper and silver sentiment banner are from my stash.  I also added Spectrum Noir sparkle to the snowflakes on the image. Go and see the lovely creations my teamies have made! Thanks for looking and stay safe and well! love Mags B x

Hi, guys!I hope you're all keeping well at this difficult time. I am no longer merely tidying my craft hovel, I am giving it a thorough Spring Clean! It's going to be fantastic when it's all done, but at the moment I'm at the really messy stage of clearing out all the boxes stored under the bed and finding somewhere to put them so I can hoover! Anyway, I'm taking a break to tell you about our latest Challenge at Dream Valley which is Our Four-Legged Friends. Our sponsor is the marvellous Crafty Ribbons so I hd to use ribbon on my card!! I have used a very old, very cute pre-coloured image from Lili of the Valley called Patchwork Butterfly. It's now available as a digi stamp. The papers are also very old, and were by K & Co about 10 years ago! I added some Purple satin ribbon to cover the join between the papers. The sentiment is from Simon Says Stamp's Look For The Rainbows set. Go and see the awesome cards my teamies have made, they w...

Hello, my dearios! I hope you and your families are all keeping well. We have another Challenge at The Holly and Ivy Christmas Challenge for you to get a head start on those Christmas cards! I have used a pre-coloured image from an old collection by Lili of the Valley. They now do downloadable pre-coloured images for printing at home, but sadly not this cutie. I trimmed the image down a bit, then layered it on silver mirri card (I love silver with blue for Christmas cards!). I added Spectrum Noir shimmer pen to all the stars. The background paper is from a long-out-of-print LOTV paper pad which I have had for years! The sentiment is from Craft Creations and is also very old! I am using up stash!!!!! My awesome teamies have made some beautiful projects to inspire you, do go and see! Thanks for looking, and have a good week. Cheerio, my dearios! love Mags B x

Good morning, my lovelies! Our new Challenge at Dream Valley is so cute, it's All About Bears. Our sponsor is the amazing Dies to Die For I have been a big fan for many years! At my Church's Toddler Group which I help to run we are a bit low on birthday cards for little boys, so my card for this Challenge is one of several that I'm donating. I used one of my favourite Lili of the Valley stamps, sadly it doesn't seem to be available any more, but do check out their website and Etsy shop for adorable images! I paper-pieced all the balloons, adding Promarker alcohol pens to give some shading for dimension, and also Glossy Accents for some shine. I used the 'out of the box' technique, cutting around the tops of the balloons before using a stitched circle die to cut out the image. Then I added fun foam behind the image to give some more dimension. The papers were hanging around in my stash. I went around all the edges with Broken China Distress Ink. ...

Hello, my dearios! Doesn't it seem a long time since Christmas? Everything is back to the daily routine - cleaning, cooking, ironing, and tidying the craft hovel, in my case! However it is never too soon to start on Christmas cards, and The Holly and Ivy Christmas Challenge is here to help! This time the Challenge lasts until the 3rd of March, which gives you plenty of time to join in! I have used an old printed image (coloured by the amazingly talented Bev Rochester ) from Lili of the Valley and added Stickles here and there - in fact, I made 8 cards using various images and Christmas papers to the same design. Yes, one of my New Year's Resolutions is to USE STUFF UP! The paper is from an old Papermania pad, and the ribbon is from the Pinflair shop in Hertford - they have beautiful ribbons! I used a Love From Lizi die and gold card for the sentiment. Check out the creations my teamies have made on the blog, then put your Santa hat on and get Christmassy! Thanks...

Morning, all! TGIF! Time for a new challenge at My Time to Craft! This fortnight our theme is Let It Snow so we'd like to see snow or snowflakes on your creation! I made a shaker card! I used some tiny snowflake stamps and white pigment ink to stamp on the blue cardbase and let them dry before assembling the shaker. The snowy background paper is an old digi from Lili of the Valley it's out of print now, but LOTV has some gorgeous paper pads on their site! The frame is from a scrap of holographic card. The sentiment is embossed with Simon Says Stamp Steel Blue powder. I love blue and white on Christmas and winter cards, it's so fresh! Look at my teamies' lovely variations on the theme, and have a go! I hope you're all looking forward to a relaxing weekend! Thanks for looking! love Mags B x

Good morning, my lovelies! It's been a busy day so far, with a hospital appointment for my latest post-cancer checkup, and the good news is I'm still in remission! Now I can shake off the worry that always lingers before any hospital appointment and tell you all about the new challenge at My Time to Craft which is this fabulous sketch: While sorting my craft hovel yet again I came across some pre-coloured images from Lili of the Valley - sadly these don't seem to be available, but do check out their newer images, they are lovely! The papers are digis from Pink Petticoat - now back in business as The Lovely Studio. For the vertical lines I used ribbon from my stash, and I cut out the image and mat with dotted rectangle dies. The glittery snowflake was in my Christmas file, I often make several die-cuts at a time, file them carefully, then forget to use them!! Anyway, do go and see my teamies' inspiration on the blog, and give the sketch a go! Thanks for ...

Good morning, my lovelies! I hope you all had a great weekend - we were visited by the grandchildren (and their parents!) which was lovely. The house seems very quiet now! We have an interesting new Challenge at Dream Valley - Use Three Patterned Papers. A good way to use up those snippets we all save! I apologise for the wonky photo! I used A girl can't have too many... rubber stamp by All Dressed Up for Little Darlings Rubber Stamps. She is so chic, with her elegant shoes and hat! I think of her as une Parisienne, so I used papers from the Paris Girl collection by Echo Park/Carta Bella. The Eiffel Tower chipboard was a magazine freebie a looooong time ago. The ribbon is from stash. I used a Penny Black Heart String die to cut the hearts swag from the same paper I used at the bottom of the card. The sentiment is from and old stamp set by Lili of the Valley. Our sponsor this fortnight is the fabulous All Dressed Up Stamps. Go and see my teamies' great c...

Hi, guys! We have a new Challenge at Dream Valley and it's very topical: Autumn Colours. So that's red, orange, brown, a little green, perhaps. Mind today has been cold and rainy so the autumn colours in S-E Herts are basically grey and more grey!!! I made my card before the last very busy fortnight (Children's Holiday Club at Church followed by a week away near Bath) and used an image from our sponsor, the fabulous All Dressed Up which I already had. Sadly, she is no longer available on the website, but there are plenty more of Wendy's delightful digis to admire! I used some old papers by Kaisercraft from the Peachy Keen Collection and added some lace from stash.  The sentiment is by Lili of the Valley.  I used a Fiskars Threading water punch on the horizontal yellow strip, and the corners are from an ancient Spellbinders die set. The papers have a lovely gloss over the red leaves, and I added Glossy Accents to the balloon - which looks blue in the photo...

Hiya! I hope your weekend is going well! Maybe you're enjoying a relaxing time In the Garden which would be a wonderful coincidence as that is our new theme at My Time to Craft! I am not a gardener, my awesome super-power is to kill plants, sadly, but I do like sitting out with a g'n't admiring the flowers that my hubby tends so succesfully! And I like colouring in images of flowers and of garden creatures! This image is an old stamp by Lili of the Valley and is sadly unavailable. The papers are from stash and the ribbon was a RAK from my daughter. Thanks for looking! love Mags B x

Hi, everyone! I hope you're having a good Thursday. I have been putting away the winter clothes - my Grannie used to quote 'Cast Not a Clout Till May Be Out' and since it's June 1st it seemed appropriate! We have a fab Recipe at CRAFT Challenge this week. For my card I used the gorgeous Charmant by Rick St Dennis. I love his portrait digis they are so elegant. The Three Papers are from an old Papermania pad, they are brighter in real life. The Two Ribbons (or 1 ribbon and 1 ricrac!) are from stash and the gold Glitter is Glamour Dust. The gold-embossed sentiment is by Lili of the Valley. Our Sponsor is Rick St Dennis MFA I admit, I found the recipe quite Challenging! Do have a look at my teamies' fab creations for some gorgeous inspiration! Thanks for looking! love Mags B x

So sorry, everyone, I thought I had scheduled this! Oops! Here is our new Challenge at The Holly and Ivy Christmas Challenge where it's always Anything Goes I made three cards this time, using pre-coloured toppers from an old set by Lili of the Valley with some green or red cardstock and some gold card to layer. The papers are from my Christmas stash. Very simple, and I tried to match the papers to the colours of the toppers, which all have added Stickles on the fur trim for some shine. Thanks for looking! love Mags B x

Good morning! Happy Monday! We have a Bank Holiday today in the UK - I hope we have good weather! It's a running joke here that on Bank Holidays we usually get rain!! We also have a new Challenge at Dream Valley which is to use Blue and Yellow on your creation - which doesn't have to be a card! I have been tidying my Craft Hovel yet again, and came across my stamps from The Greeting Farm. They are lovely stamps, such great images and such high quality red rubber. They are easier to stamp than clear stamps, I think. Anyway, when my printer ran out of ink so I couldn't print out an image by our sponsor Cute as a Button Stamps I chose an old Anya stamp from The Greeting Farm. Sadly, I can't find her on the website. I cut her out with a Spellbinders Oval die and layered her onto a Spellbinders Scalloped Ovals mat, and added her to the card with foam tape. I added Spectrum Noir sparkle to the flower in her hair, and a gem from stash. The paper is also from s...