Madcap Manor

 Good morning, all! Welcome to a new Challenge at  My Time to Craft Christmas ! Our theme this time is Wreaths  - not just standalone wreaths but wreaths on a door, wreaths on cute critters, any variation on the theme! I have made cards with standalone wreaths, though with different techniques. For my first card I used a die from Tonic Studios that came with a magazine.  I cut it once in textured dark green card and once in lighter green mirror card.  I glued them down onto the die-cut base slightly offset. The silver metal snowflakes are table confetti, I added a few red nuvo drops and a bow.  Papers and ribbon are from my stash and the green striped paper is edged with  Love from Lizi Sway peel-offs . Card 2 is stamped. I used the  Every Good Thing  layering stamp set by Pinkfresh Studio to stamp the base of the wreath in two colours.  I added tiny images of leaves, poinsettias and pinecones.  The sentiment is an old one by Clearl...

  Good afternoon, my dearios!  We're starting the week with a new Challenge from Dream Valley and our new theme is No Squares or Rectangles. Our sponsor is The Paper Shelter. One lucky winner will be able to choose 3 of their gorgeous digis as a prize!  I have made a rocker card, using dies from Spellbinders. I made sure that my largest die wasn't too wide to fit into a 6" envelope! Go on, ask me why lol! This adorable image is Teamwork - the pandas are so cute!  I used Tonic Studios Fresh Mint pearlescent card for the cardbase, and the paper is from my stash. The gold-embossed sentiment is by Love from Lizi. I embellished the image mat with Gold Coast Nuvo Drops.   Do go and see my teamies' creations, they have been so inventive in making shaped cards that aren't squares or rectangles!  Thanks for looking, and take care!  love Mags B x

Hello my dearios! I have some good news: my son has had a heart operation which we've been expecting any time over the last couple of years, and it's all been a great success! He spent 12 days in hospital, bored out of his mind, but is now convalescing with us for a while before travelling home to his own family. I hadn't realised what a weight of worry was on my mind until it was lifted! In more good news, we have a new challenge at The Holly and Ivy Christmas Challenge! These tags are made with dies from a Tonic Studios kit, I think the stained glass look is very effective. Do go and see what my teamies have done and join in! It may be the middle of August, but Christmas will be upon us before we know it, so it's always satisfying to get ahead with all the cards! Take care, my lovelies, and thanks for looking! love Mags B x

Hello, my dearios! I'm sorry I'm late with this post, I have had a horrible stomach upset today. It was my own fault, I made a delicious Tagliatelle Carbonara yesterday with butter, streaky bacon, onions, brie and cream. Sadly, my insides can no longer cope with very rich food, and I spent half the night 'calling Ralph and Hughie on the Big White Telephone,' to use our friend David's graphic phrase. Too Much Information? Anyway, I spent a lot of today asleep, and didn't realise it was Friday until half an hour ago! Whoops! Anyway, now I'm here, feeling much better and ready for my DT post for the latest Challenge at My Time to Craft. Our new theme is Summer Wedding. I made this card for the son of a good friend, who was due to marry his Young Man in June. Unfortunately the wedding has been postponed until next year. I used a Tonic Studios die from a kit for the border, and inlaid the flowers and leaves with Tonic's Satin mirror card. The ribbon...

Eek! I'm so sorry my post for the new My Time to Craft Challenge is a day late! No excuses - I forgot. Anyway, our theme is No Squares or Rectangles - check out the blog to see what we mean and how my teamies have interpreted the challenge. I went with a circle card - and went out of my comfort zone by making a Shabby Chic card. I was inspired by Craftangel online - the lovely Shilpa makes beautiful cards, and her explanations are so clear. I layered ivory Centura Pearl cardstock with a very old green and gold paper and some white card. The lacy layer is cut with a gorgeous Rainbow Rose Edge Die from tonic studios, I cut it twice to make a circle. I added a strip of rose ribbon across the base. The flowers and leaves are from Wild Orchid Crafts. I added 2 butterflies cut from the ivory and green cardstock with a Martha Stewart Punch all over the page butterfly punch and layered them, then added brown and gold gems from my stash on the bodies. The gold-embossed senti...

I know, I know, it's only a couple of weeks since we were all preparing for Christmas, and here is our first Holly and Ivy Christmas Challenge for 2018! But 'the sooner you start, the sooner you'll finish', as my Mum used to say to me when I was meant to be tidying my room! I made a very simple card, using a die-set from Tonic Studios which sadly seems to be out of print. The green background paper has a slight ombre effect. I lined the white die-cuts with circles cut from the same paper to emphasise the details. The sentiment and holly sprig come from an old stamp set from Clearly Besotted who are having A SALE!!!! I love how elegant these layering dies look! Do have a go at the Challenge, you'll feel so pleased with yourself! And don't forget to check out my teamies' gorgeous creations. You have more time to join in because this Challenge doesn't end until February 4th. Enjoy! Thanks for looking! love Mags B x

Hi, guys! Apologies for the delay in posting, I've had a gippy tummy today and spent most of it asleep! It's a nice and easy Challenge at My Time to Craft! this fortnight: Die Cuts Only . I used a set of nesting dies by Tonic and layered them with plain die-cut circles. The flowers are stamped and die-cut with an old set from Clearly Besotted, and the sentiment is from the same set. Have a look at my teamies' creations, they are so creative, they will inspire you! Remember, it's Die-cuts ONLY - a die-cut image doesn't count! (In fact, my stamped and cut flowers and my stamped sentiment may be stretching the Challenge a bit too far, come to think of it.) Thanks for looking, and have a good weekend! love Mags B x

We have just had a lovely long weekend in Co Dublin to celebrate my grandson's first birthday. There was a party on Saturday which was really good fun - and we had sunshine! Now we're home again there is a heap of washing to be done, of course, and it's a grey and drizzly day. Today will be a stay indoors and craft day, I think!! It's already time for Challenge 11 at The Holly and Ivy Christmas Challenge where the theme is always Anything Goes. Have you started your Christmas cards yet? There's only 5 months to go!!!!! In my never-ending attempts to tidy my craft hovel I often come across supplies I'd forgotten about, and that's how I found this Tonic Studios die set, which sadly seems to be unavailable. I layered white card on gold mirri card, glueing everything straight down so it won't be too bulky to post. I added a small stamped Christmas tree in the centre, from an old set by Lawn Fawn called 'Peace Joy Love.' Then I did o...

Good evening, all! Thank you for your kind words last week when my daughter had a hospital appointment. Unfortunately she has been diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma, which is a type of cancer that often attacks people in their 20s and 30s - but it has been caught early, and the prognosis is very good! There's a 90% chance of a complete cure. The next 6 months will be tough, as she must have chemotherapy once a fortnight, but she is determined to make the best of things. It helps that she has very good friends - and so do I, including you guys! The ribbon for the disease is coloured violet, so I hunted through my snippets box for purple papers, which I distressed with Dusty Concord Distress Ink, to make this card for her. The gorgeous image is one of Krista Smith's amazing artworks: this one is an older digi called 'Chasing Butterflies' but I can't find her in Krista's shop. I coloured her in Promarkers, using the wonderful thin nibs, and the list is be...