Madcap Manor

Hi there! Well, it's been a busy fortnight: appointments at the local hospital and specialised eye unit (I have a tear in one retina) which involved lots of staring into bright lights, trying not to blink.   Then there was the annual blood-pressure check-up, which meant blood tests and a wee test, followed by a phone appointment with my lovely GP.  I have to eat lots of bananas to improve my potassium levels - so much nicer than taking tablests! Finally there was a loooong dental appointment to fit teeth straighteners.  It's been quite a medical journey! All is now calm, and I've been making cards again.  I used papers from the April 23 card kid by  Love from Lizi .  So pretty. I like sending 'hello' cards to cheer my friends up!  It's such a simple sentiment but says a lot. I hope you're all keeping well! Thanks for looking and take care! love Mags B x

 Hi there! It's never too soon to start thinking about next Christmas! So we have our first Challenge of 2023 at  The Holly and Ivy Christmas Challenge  to inspire you! Remember, it doesn't have to be a card! I have used papers and ephemera from last November's kit by  Love from Lizi  for a card. I used a no-scraps template by  Jess Crafts  for the patterned paper, and some pearlised pink cardstock for the background.  The sentiment is one of the  Simple sentiment strips - Christmas  by Taylored Expressions. If you're not 'all Christmassed out,' take a look at the Challenge blog and join in - you'll be glad you did when November rolls around and you have a good stack of Christmas cards, tags etc all ready to go! Thanks for looking and take care! love Mags B x

 Hello, my lovelies! I hope you're all keeping well.  We had snow on Sunday - 9 inches overnight! It's more than we've seen in several years.  I know, I know, those of you in places where snow is much more frequent will be rolling on the floor, laughing, but here in the south of the UK we rarely get so much.  Everything looked very Christmassy on Monday morning. And now we have the last Challenge of the year at  The Holly and Ivy Christmas Challenge , which lasts until 8th January 2023. I apologise for the shine on the image, I had to use the camera flash, and all the papers are glossy.  Papers, ephemera, bow and sentiment are all from the November 2022 card kit by  Love from Lizi .  I used a tiny bow stamp from a very old Simon Says Stamp set and some pale pink ink to stamp on the card base to give more interest.  The sketch is by Jess Crafts, from her paper pad templates  here. I hope you are all getting organised for the Big Day witho...

 Q: Qhat do you get if you cross a Kangaroo with a Sheep? A: A Woolly Jumper. A very old joke.  (Here in the UK a sweater is also known as a jumper.) Our new challenge at  My Time to Craft Christmas  is to show winter clothing on your creation.  Scarves, hats, gloves, coats, woolly jumpers...  The papers and ephemera on this card are from the  Love from Lizi November 2022 card kit  which is called 'Cosy Christmas.'  The sentiment is from the  Perfect Sentiments Holiday  stamp set by Pinkfresh Studio, and I added Gold Coast Nuvo Drops to give some sparkle. My second card uses an old Memory Box die called 'Precious Mittens' which is now out of print.  I cut the first layer from pearlised white cardstock and also red paper, trimmed off the red mittens and glued them together.  The purple pearlised background has been embossed with a 'knitted' embossing folder.  Papers and ribbon are from stash and the sentiment is anothe...

 Good morning! Hooray and Huzzah, it's almost the weekend! There's great excitement here at the Manor, because our dayghter is popping over from Ireland to visit.  Tomorrow we go to That There London Town to see an exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum.  I admit, I'm rather nervous, but I have a new mask and hopefully the trains won't be too crowded. Yes, there is a point to that tale: our new challenge at  My Time to Craft!  is all about Transportation.  Not just trains but cars, boats, aeroplanes, Santa's sleigh.....  I went with bicycles! I used a Memory Box die which sadly is out of print.  I used an old Spellbinders decorative circles die set for the lacy purple mats, and the sentiment is by MFT and also, sadly, out of print.  The rest is all from my stash.  I added gold sequins to the flower centres. This card is in a completely different style! The papers and image came from the October 2022 kit by  Love from Lizi. ...

 Evening, all! Sorry I'm late with my post, I have been wrapping presents for Santa to give out to the children at the Toddler Club Christmas Party in 3 weeks' time.  It's always good to get Christmas preparations under way early! Speaking of which, we have a new challenge for you at  The Holly and Ivy Christmas Challenge!  I have made a CAS card. Once again I have used some older stash.  The background is embossed with an ancient Sizzix folder with Christmas words.  The vertical strip is a snippet from my Christmas papers, edged with Love from Lizi's  Gold holographic peel-offs .  The gold mirri sentiment is an old Love from Lizi die.  I matted the panel on some red paper before adding it to my card base.  Simples! Check out my teamies' creations on the challenge blog and get inspired to make a Christmas card! It's not long now until the Big Day! Thanks for looking, and take care! love Mags B x

 I am such a numpty! I was so sure that I'd scheduled my post for  My Time to Craft!  on Friday that I didn't check it on the day.  Massive apologies, everyone! Anyway, the theme is Wings  and I have used papers and toppers from a free gift of papers and toppers by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds which came with a magazine a few months ago.  My hubby and I have been members of the RSPB for many years, and it's lovely to see that they are now getting into card supplies! My first card uses a gorgeous kingfisher topper from the kit, it has some fabulous gold foiling on it. Our local RSPB bird reserve (Rye House) is notable for its kingfishers, which are even more beautiful in real life than this pretty image. My second card uses a dragonfly die by Love from Lizi, which is sadly out of print.  I cut it from blue mirror cardstock. The papers are from the same RSPB kit. Check out the fab creations thst my teamies have left on the challenge blog...

 Hiya! I'm sorry I'm a bit late with my DT post for  My Time to Craft , I was doing the flower arrangement at Church this morning, and then I had a mammogram this afternoon (ouchies!)  But here am I, faint but pursuing! (My Grannie used to say that, it's probably Shakespeare.) Our new theme is Fantasy or Whimsy.   Fairies, magical beasts, mages, whimsical images of quirky animals or birds or people - whatever takes your fancy. My first card uses 'Magical Day', an older clear stamp from  The Greeting Farm .  This one is out of print, but if you check out the 'Fantasy' tab on their website you'll see another set of cute unicorn images. The papers are from an old First Edition pad which has a unicorn theme.  The background is glittered and I used pearlised card for the mats and  Love from Lizi sway peel-offs  in Teal Mirror, which give some lovely shine.  The sentiment came with the stamp set. My second card is more whimsical, using a very ...

  Good morning! Welcome to a new Challenge at Dream Valley. Our theme this time is add Embellishments so dig out your favourite embellies and have fun!   Our sponsor is Crafty Sentiments Designs and I have used the adorable Couples digi stamp for an anniversary card. The patterned paper came from my Snippets drawer. I coloured the bears with Copics and the sentiment came from an old Hero Arts stamp set. I used several embellishments: Peel-offs from Love from Lizi; some heart confetti from an old bag of sequins by Little Things by Lucy ; and some twine from my stash.   Check out the blog for more inspiration!   Thanks for looking and take care!   love Mags B x

Hello! Welcome to a new challenge at My Time to Craft! Our theme is Springtime Insects - butterflies, bees, ladybirds, ants, dragonflies, moths..... Of course butterflies were the first insect I thought about!  I used old dies from Love from Lizi and rose gold satin mirri card (by Tonic) for my butterflies.  The gold moondust strips are also from Love from Lizi.  The papers are from an old First Edition pad. My second card features bees from Paper Smooches (sadly missed.) I blended Distress Ink behind where the bees and beehive would go and stamped the sentiment which came from the same stamp set.  I coloured the images with watercolour markers then fussy-cut them and glued them in place.  I had a smudge near the sentiment so added 3 gold pearls. Check out the inspiration left for you on our blog and join in! Thanks for looking and stay well! love Mags B x

Morning, all! It's April, two weeks away from Easter, so OF COURSE we have sleet and snow in S-E Hertfordshire! A good day to stay snug and warm indoors and craft! We have a new challenge at My Time to Craft Christmas to inspire you, and it's a great challenge - Use 3 or more Patterned Papers. I don't know about you, but I have so many patterned paper pads that this kind of challenge really encourages me to use some up. My first card includes some paper piecing/decoupage on a cute gnome from Simon Says Stamp.  I used snippets of 6 different papers. There's quite a lot of bling from gold glitter peel-offs by Love from Lizi, both straight strips and mini circles.  I added a glitter circle to the Gnome's hat, and layered the image on gold glitter card. My second card also uses Lizi's peel-offs, this time in silver, and a star ornament die that I think came in one of her kits a couple of years ago.  This time I managed to use 5 different papers.  The mats are al...

Hi there! Happy New Year! Now that the celebrations are over and life is returning to normal (or as normal as possible considering we are still coping with Covid!) we are back with the first Challenge of 2022 at My Time to Craft Christmas. It's an unusual challenge: Something beginning with 'S'   While thinking about this I came up with Snow... Santa... Sleigh... I asked my hubby for more suggestions and he said 'Stuffing!' I don't think he's quite got the hang of papercrafting...  Anyway, I have made a Shaker Tag with a die-cut Snow Scene. I inked some watercolour card with Speckled Egg, Peacock Feathers and Chipped Sapphire Distress Oxides. The scene die is an old one by Love from Lizi which is sadly out of print. I cut it from some white non-shed glitter card by Tonic. The sequins are a mix from my stash, when they fall down to the bottom of the tag they show through the cut-out pieces and look very sparkly!  For more inspiration check out my t...

  The Challenge will last until 11th January 2022.   Hiya, all! Christmas seems to be coming faster and faster now! It's the last challenge of the year at The Holly and Ivy Christmas Challenge.   I have used items from 'Oh Santa!', the November 2021 card kit by Love from Lizi. Unfortunately the kit has sold out but check out the Christmas goodies in Lizi's shop! Everything came from the kit, including the cute Santa image and the pretty ribbon bow. I used an old sketch from Mojo Monday: the challenge blog has closed, but Julee now has a sketch challenge on her blog, Poetic Artistry.   Check out my teamies work and enjoy your Christmas crafting!  Stay safe and well and - merry Christmas!  Thanks for looking! love Mags B x

  Hiya! Happy Monday! We have a new challenge at Dream Valley which is Anything Goes. This is a 'Just for Fun' Challenge as there's no sponsor. I used items from the Love from Lizi October kit. The adorable deer is one of the ephemera pieces and the background paper has some triangles that are printed to look like glitter. I covered those triangles with a Spectrum Noir sparkle pen. The white circle is pearlised card, I ran it through an embossing folder from my stash to give some texture. The sentiment says 'You leave a little sparkle wherever you go.'  Thanks for looking and take care!  love Mags B x

  Good morning! I hope you're all keeping well. We have a new Challenge at My Time to Craft and this time we'd like to see  No Patterned Paper. Instead you can use dies or an embossing folder or simply stamp an image and sentiment onto plain card.  I used a die-cut, this is an old Simon Says Stamp die called 'Rose Flower Frame.' I cut the die from a square of white card and coloured the flower with Copics. I layered it on more whte card and then on some textured gold cardstock. The sentiment is from the Simple Pleasures stamp set by Love from Lizi and reads 'You've Got This.' My teamies have left some great creations on the challenge blog to give you some ideas!  Thanks for looking and stay safe!  love Mags B x

  Hi, guys! Just a quick post about the new Challenge at My Time to Craft where our theme is Use a Ribbon and/or a Bow.   I have used papers, ephemera and a die from the June kit by Love From Lizi. This is a mini slimline card, sized 6 x 3 inches.  The hexagonal sticker reads 'Let's Go Wild!' I apologise for the glare on the flamingo, I'm not a very good photographer! I hope you're all keeping well and staying safe.  I, for one, will not be abandoning my mask, handwashing and Social Distancing any time soon, in spite of the so-called 'Freedom Day' on July 19th.  If I ever gave someone Covid I would never forgive myself! Anyway, thanks for looking! love Mags B x

  Good morning from a bright, hot, summery S-E Hertfordshire! It has been SCORCHIO! for the last few days - I felt quite sorry yesterday for the Croatia and England teams having to play football in this weather. (Don't mention the Cricket. On a perfect wicket for batting England collapsed horribly and New Zealand deservedly won the Test Series.)  Our new challenge at Dream Valley is very appropriate: Summer Fun. Our sponsor is the awesome Bugaboo Stamps. I love them, especially the 'oldie' characters Stella and Gus, they are so funny! I used Stella Teenagers and Flowers for my card, which was one of the digis that the DT received from Bugaboo. Isn't she great? I used a very bright paper from the Over the Rainbow paper pad by Dovecraft for the background and matched some of the colours when colouring the image. The ribbon came from my stash. The sentiment is stamped in >Atlantis Green embossing powder from Love from Lizi, it has flecks of gold in it whi...

 Good morning from a warm and sunny S-E Herts! Dare we hope that Summer is on its way? We have a new Challenge for you at My Time to Craft and our theme is Floral . That is, please make your focal point flowery.  I used items from the May 2021 kit by Love from Lizi - the kit is sold out, but there should be some of the gorgeous papers and decoupage still available. I made a simplified Bridge card, following instructions and measurements on this video by Kelly Acheson.  The flower pot has some gorgeous glitter on the flowers and butterfly, and the resin roses came in Lizi's kit. I really like this fold, it's a great way to use up scraps and snippets of paper! Please do go and see the inspiration left on the blog by my teamies, their cards are all lovely! Thanks for looking and take care! love Mags B x

Hello, my dearios! It's a cold but sunny spring day in Hertfordshire - and we have had snow flurries! Only a few flakes at a time, and certainly not enough to settle, but even so it is rather a surprise! Spring is a very variable season! Springtime is our new theme at Dream Valley and our sponsor is the fabulous Bugaboo Digi Stamps. We were sent some images to use and I chose this gorgeous Spring Boot. So cute! I took the colours from the patterned paper, which is from the  Spring Bloom pad by Love from Lizi.  I love those pastels! Go and see my teamies' creations on the challenge blog, they will brighten your day! Thanks for looking and stay safe. love Mags B x

Evening, all! The last couple of days have been very cold and windy - perfect for staying indoors and making a Christmas card or two!   Yes, there's a new challenge at My Time to Craft Christmas and we'd like you to use Die-Cuts Only on your creations. No stamps! Just die-cuts!   I made an easel card, using Spellbinders Grand Circles and Grand Scalloped Circles dies for the base and papers. Everything I used came from an old kit called Festive Forest by Love from Lizi including the green die-cut foam deer which I used as a stopper. There are still some very pretty stickers and tags on her website here.    The one thing I always have to remember when making a circle card is to keep the width to 5 1/2 inches, as my largest envelopes are only 6 inches! I speak from sad experience.   My teamies have done some wonderful work as usual, have a look at the Challenge post to see just how versatil die-cuts are!   Thanks for looking, and s...