Madcap Manor

 Hello, good evening and welcome! Our latest Challenge at My Time to Craft! is to Make It Feminine! Let's get girly! I've used lots of flowers and lots of pink to make a birthday card for my lovely neighbour. Everything came from the January kit by Love from Lizi which is called 'Fresh Start.'   The kit is sold out, but many of the items included are now available on Lizi's website here I absolutely love the delicate ephemera and the printed vellum which I used as my background paper.  To stop any glue from showing through, I cut a piece of thin cardstock the same size as my card base, then cut the vellum longer at the top and bottom and folded it over so I could glue it on the back before sticking the panel to the card.  Finally I added some flower sequins to give some bling. I'm sorry the picture is a bit pale, the colours are stronger irl. My teamies' beautiful creations are on the blog post, waiting to inspire you! Thanks for looking and stay...

Hi, guys! Our new Challenge at My Time to Craft is to use colour on coloured card. That is, any coloured card except white/cream! I used Distress Oxide Inks in Barn Door, Carved Pumpkin, Mustard Seed, Cracked Pistachio, Salty Ocean and Shaded Lilac on black cardstock to make a script background. The sentiments and the flower stickers are from a kit by Love From Lizi. The ribbon is from stash. Have fun with your colours and mediums and join in! My teamies' creations on the blog will inspire you! Thanks for looking! love Mags B x

Good morning! We have a DT CALL at My Time to Craft! . We re a very friendly group, so if you would like to join us, hop over to the Challenge Blog and get all the details there! Now on to our new Challenge which is Distress It! You can use Distress Inks and a blending tool to colour the edges of your papers, or use scissors to rough them up. I did both - and it's another Christmas card! You can just about see that I used Tea Dye Distress Ink to add colour to the background paper, which is by Papermania from an old pad. I also used scissors to roughen the edges, and made sure that I didn't glue up to the edge so I could lift it up (I hope that makes sense!) The totally gorgeous image is Candy Cane Angel by Hannah Lynn for Crafts and Me. I glittered her wings and the fur trim on her outfit. The ribbon and lace are from stash. The snowflake is made with a Laced Pine Sowflake die by Cheery Lynn and I used glitter embossing powder to give it some shine. I heat e...

.... and the livin' is easy! Our topical Challenge at My Time to Craft is Summertime so we'd like to see bright summery colours, summer activities, summer flowers and so on. To be honest, I was really tempted to go with an image of someone holding an umbrella! There's been so much rain of late! But I kept my card bright and sunny, maybe the weather will get the hint! This beautiful image is Sunshine by Ching Chou Kuik. I coloured her with Promarkers and added Wink of Stella in clear all over her dress. The Frame behind her is by Joy Crafts from Noor! Design, as is the die I used for the two leafy fronds on the left. The wreath die is Catalina Wreath by Memory Box. The papers came from a magazine a long time ago! I used a retro flower punch for the layered pink flower, and a Martha Stewart PATP punch for the yellow horizontal border. The sentiment is from Say It In Style by Clearly Besotted. Do join in our Challenge - if it's grey and gloomy where yo...

Hi, guys! I hope you're having a good Saturday and staying warm (in the Northern Hemisphere) or cool (in the Southern Hemisphere.) We have another great Challenge at My Time to Craft! which is Tag It! Either make a card that incorporates a tag, or make a tag on its own. I went with a shabby chic look: The base is cut with a Sizzix die. The paper is by Prima from an old paper pad called 'Fairy Belle'. I went round the edges with Vintage Photo Distress Ink and added flowers by Wild Orchid Crafts. The sentiment is by Lili of the Valley and the crochet lace is from stash. Go across to the Challenge blog and see what my teamies have made, they will definitely inspire you! Thanks for looking, and have a great weekend! love, Mags B x

Happy Saturday, guys! It's My Time to Craft and this week our theme is very topical, with Mothering Sunday tomorrow: For a Special Lady . That can be for a mum, but it could be for a friend or a girl's birthday! I used City Girl , one of the gorgeous images by Hannah Lynn, available from Crafts and Me and coloured her with Copics. I added white Pearl Pen to her earrings and pendant, and also to the punched butterflies. The mat is a Spellbinders die which sadly no longer seems to be available.The sentiment is from the Penny Black Gratitude sentiment set and is stamped in Mama Elephant Eggplant pigment ink which is just gorgeous! The butterflies were cut with two Martha Stewart punches: the 'Punch All Over the Page' Butterfly and the 3 in 1 punch . Papers, ribbon and flower are from stash. Go and peruse my teamies' gorgeous makes, then get out your girliest stash and have a go! Thanks for looking! love Mags B x

Hi, guys! I hope your weekend is going swingingly! Since it's Saturday, there's a new Challenge at My Time to Craft . It's a very Seasonal Challenge, the theme is Snowmen Now, I have been a wee bit naughty recently, I have bought some new Christmas stamps I fell for a new stamp set by Paper Smooches called Cool Dudes because apart from having some very cute snowdudes in the set, there are also separate stamps so that you can build your own Snowman face! So that's just what I did! And I made a dozen cards, all suitable for children, to these two designs. I arranged the Snowmens' features on my Fiskars Stamp Press, and stamped in Memento Tuxedo Black, then used a Spellbinders circle die to cut the face, and a scallopped die for the mat. The hat and the nose are coloured with Promarkers and the furry edge glittered. The papers are from Papermania. The sentiment is from the Paper Smooches Christmas Sampler stsmp set. Do go and see the lovely creations that ...

Good morning! (At least, I hope it's morning when this post goes up, I'm at a wedding on Saturday!) Our new Challenge at My Time to Craft is Christmas Decoupage . Now, Decoupage and Teabag Folding were the first 'techniques' I ever used on cards, long before I knew about Stamping or Blogs or Challenges! Cutting and manipulating and layering paper is so relaxing! The foiled decoupage is by Dufex, a firm that sadly no longer is trading. It is quite detailed to cut out. I layered the pieces with silicon glue from Pinflair, and layered it on a piece of gold card to give a narrow border. The card base is Centura Pearl, embossed with a diamonds folder by Sizzix. I hope you'll all go over to the Blog and see the fabulous Christmas Decoupage makes of my teamies! Then have a go yourself - decoupage seems not to be so common these days, but do try it if you haven't done any before, it's very satisfying! Remember, it's Christmas Decoupage - that means i...

Hi, guys! Saturday means it's another Challenge at My Time to Craft This time we'd like to see Farmyard Animals starring on your creations! I have a friend who adores pigs, so my choice was easy! I used papers and an image from a CD-Rom that includes 'Honey and Hugs' by Papermania, and did some decoupage. The ribbon is from stash, and the sentiment and die-cut are by paper Smooches Do go and see the cute makes of my teamies at My Time to Craft and join in our fun Challenge! You may want to sing 'Old Macdonald had a Farm' to give yourself some more inspiration! Thanks for looking! love Mags B x

Good morning! Happy November!! it's Saturday, so that means another great challenge at My Time to Craft! This week we'd like to see a Charm on your creation! Simples! I don't often use charms, I haven't the patience to fasten tiny jump rings together, so I tend to use thread or twine to hold them in place. After a rummage through my boxes of 'bits' I came across a really pretty teapot charm that came originally from Whiff of Joy and that inspired my card. The mug stamp and the sentiment are from Simon Says Stamp it came with one of their monthly kits. I stamped it in Navy, Pool and Soft Pool Hero Arts Shadow Inks. The tartan paper is by K & Co and has been lurking in my Snippets Drawer for about 3 years! The narrow blue strip is made with a scrap of Centura Pearl cardstock. The thread is actually crochet cotton. Pop over to My Time to Craft and take a look at the charming creations that my fab teamies have made! Then have a go yourself! Than...

Good morning! I hope you all have a happy weekend planned with lots of relaxing crafty time! Once I have tidied my Craft Hovel (yet again!) and changed all the bedsheets I am hoping to do some colouring, because.... I have my very first Copics!!! They are Copic Ciaos, and I am hoping to ask for more for Christmas! :D My card today, however, was coloured using Spectrum Noirs. (I'm going to have to do a lot more colouring now, otherwise my Promarkers and Speccies will feel neglected lol!) At My Time to Craft our theme this week is Santa I went for an old-fashioned look. I must apologise for the picture quality, it was quite a gloomy day when I snapped it. The image is one of my favourite Santas: Antique Santa by Penny Black. He is one of their Slapstick Cling stamps. I added gold stickles to the stars on his coat and the one on his staff, and Diamond stickles to his fur trim. The papers are Papermania At Christmas Time by docrafts, sadly it seems to be unavailable now. ...

Good morning! I hope your weekend is going well! Our new Challenge at My Time to Craft is 'Fantasy' - a really fun theme! We also have a DT CALL - all the deets are on the blog, do go and see! The DT are a lovely bunch, so friendly and welcoming! Here is my Fantasy card, starring Autumn Fairy a digistamp from The Greeting Farm. I love her sly expression! I coloured her with Spectrum Noirs and glittered her wings. The papers are all from an 'Origins' 6x6 pad by Basic Grey, including the leaves, which were cut using Lawn Fawn's Stitched Leaves Dies The sentiment is from Penny Black Gratitude clear stamp set, and so is the flower motif. Well, I don't know if there is an Autumn Fairy at the bottom of my garden, but there are certainly a lot of leaves! Go and see the fantastic creations from the Team (especially Ema's!) and also the details of the DT Call! Thanks for looking! Mags B x

Good morning, good morning! I hope your weekend is going well! After thoroughly cleaning the kitchen (and scrubbing the floor!) I am settled in my craft hovel, listening to the cricket! Bliss! And my hubby has just provided a cup of coffee! Which brings me to the current challenge for My Time to Craft which is Food and/or Drink Let's see lots of yummy grub on your creations, possibly with lashings of lemonade!!! This little cutie is Strawberry SB basket and is one of the gorgeous 'Sunbonnet' digi images from Bugaboo Stamps I coloured her with Promarkers and added Glossy Accents to the seeds on her bonnet, and stickles to the strawberries and the heart on her skirt. The background paper is from my box of 'magazine freebies.' I used a Fiskar's 'Apron Lace' punch on the green horizontal strip. The sentiment is by Lili of the Valley from their Girlie Banners sentiment set. Mmmm.... strawberries.... I'm feeling quite peckish now! Do go an...

Hiya! I hope everyone is having a great weekend! I've just had a really good week, my sister has been staying with us while she attended at course in London, which has been lovely! Now it's time to do all the cleaning and tidying that I neglected last week! But it's also time for a new challenge at My Time To Craft ! Our theme this time is HAIR - no, not the risque musical from the 1960s (if you can remember that far back!) We'd like to see images coloured in non-traditional colours! That means PINK or BLUE or Any other colour that isn't brunette, blond, black or auburn I went for Turquoise I love these colours of Promarkers! And this image was the natural one to use, too: she is 'Windswept' by Krista Smith, and she is a rubber stamp from Sugar Nellie/Funky Kits and sadly she seems to be discontinued. The Promarkers for her hair are: Marine, Turquoise, Duck Egg and Cool Aqua, and her dress is Burnt Orange, Bright Orange, Mandarin and Soft Peach. ...

Good morning! I hope you're all having a relaxing Saturday with a minimum of housework and a maximum of crafty time! There's a new Challenge at My Time To Kraft which is Use Craft . (Did you see what I did there?!) As long as we can see Kraft on your artwork, it's all good. Colour on it, emboss it, mat and layer it - however your fancy takes you! Now, I have to apologise for this dull picture, irl the colours are much prettier! I made my card base from Neenah Desert Storm Kraft card, and it's cut to the American A2 size (4.25" x 5.50") and i rounded the bottom corners with the faithful Corner Chomper by We R Memory Keepers. I stamped the background with Versamark, using a background stamp by Hero Arts/Basic Grey called Circles and Diamonds . I went over the circles with a teal gel pen from Sakura. It's shinier than shown on the photo! The chipboard butterfly is from Maya Road, I've had it for ages! I covered it with paper from the Basic Grey ...

Good morning, all! I hope you're enjoying your weekend! My house is full of people - my daughter is over from Ireland, and my son, daughter-in-law and baby granddaughter are here from Shropshire. We have a family wedding tomorrow, my niece is getting married! It's time for another Challenge at My Time To Craft! and it's a technique that is very popular: Paper Piecing! My card is very simple because I wanted the Penny Black image 'Love Blush' to stand out. (Sadly, it looks as though the stamp is discontinued, at any rate, I can't find it online.) It is very fiddly to cut out all the petals! I used Lotv Bonnets and Bowties papers. I stamped the image on 3 pink papers and 1 green one, and then I stamped the image in the middle of my card blank. Then it was a matter of finding my scissors and snipping away - it took quite a while! i did cheat a bit and coloured the very narrowest sections with felt-tips! The banner is the Bannerific set by Lawn Fawn. I ...

Good morning, all! I hope you're having a good weekend! My daughter is over from Dublin. She has a job there, and now she and her partner are looking for their own place. Exciting! Children grow up so fast!!! it's time for another Challenge at My Time to Craft and this time it's Christmas in June . Well, it's never too early to get the Christmas cards started, is it? (I apologise for the naff photo!) I have some old die-cut sheets of images from Lili of the Valley coloured by the amazing Bev Rochester . I love these cute children decorating the tree - and I wish i could colour like that!!! The striped paper came from a pad of 'Back to Basics' Christmas paper by Dovecraft, and the sentiment is from a sheet of foiled Christmas sentiments, both of which came from Hobbycraft. The ribbon is from stash, and the snowflakes are made with a Martha Stewart punch and then glittered. Go and see the gorgeous Christmas creations made by my teamies, and make a C...