Use your Dies

Hello one and all. It's my pleasure to be hosting this challenge at Allsorts and I've chosen DIES as the optional theme, Anything Goes is also most welcome. Going forward we are now  a fortnightly challenge and we have welcomed some new team mates too.

I have had a self imposed embargo on crafty purchases this year and have actually managed to restrain myself (apart from perhaps one or two accidental purchases!!). I feel that I have accomplished that mission and have used lots and lots of crafty goodies that have never been used/opened. One of them being the Sue Wilson die that is centre stage on my projects below.

The background papers (The Range) were leftovers from gift boxes that I made last year so I made the card bases to fit the sizes I had. Glittery green board was perfect for the sentiment trees and I stuck them on more scraps of the same pad die cut with a favourite Spellbinders Fancy Ovals set.

Both cards were finished off with die cut poinsettias and some gems.

3 prizes of Oakwood dies and coordinating stamps.

Before I go I would just like to thank you for your continued visits, comments and support and to wish you a very Happy and Peaceful Christmas xx

 

Winter Flowers & Fauna

   

 Hello friends. We have a wintry optional theme at Allsorts this week

Winter Flowers & Fauna chosen by Brenda and the prize is this

2 prizes AALL and Create A5 stamp sets

I love being on this Design Team they are such an inspirational bunch and I have tried to extend my  repertoire!! It's working and these days I don't always go for "cute".

I have had the Cheery Lynn poinesttia die for many years and normally use it as an embellishment on the aforementioned "cute" cards. This time I wanted it to be the star so cut it in some lovely satin board that came from Joanna Sheen a long time ago and stuck them on a heat embossed hessian Wow stamp (also very old). The die cut sentiment is one of Sue Wilsons. To finish off I splattered gold watercolour paint. The card is actually a lovely clotted cream colour but the glare from the gold has lightened them somewhat.

As we kiss goodbye to November I thought I would share some pics of the last couple of weeks where we seem to have had ALL the weather thrown at us!!

Sunny days

Frosty Days (and kisses)

                            

Snowy Days

Rainy Days

Thank you for paying me a visit today. I hope you have a good weekend xx

Tea anyone?

I was asked by one of my regular customers to make a Birthday card for her Sister. I am still rummaging in my stash and decided to use one of the free downloads from Making Cards.

This ties in rather nicely with the new challenge at

Which is buttons or ribbon  (remember to tell us why)

My "go to" finishing touch is definitely ribbon. When seam binding first became fashionable I think I bought every available colour and still have masses in my vast collection. It's so easy to tie into a perfect bow and always looks amazing. These days though I buy white and colour with alcohol markers as necessary!!

It is much larger than I would usually make (A5) so I filled it out a bit with complimentary coloured mats and cut a doily using my Gemini. The sentiments were stamped using stamps from a couple of free sets, so a freebie all round, except for the seam binding.

We are still without rain in our part of the UK. I am actually missing mowing my lawn  now and all  Bowie and Bumble's favourite streams, except one, have dried up. They do have a paddling pool but won't use it so it is becoming very useful for me on extremely hot days!! It has been a little cooler the last couple of mornings so Surprise and I enjoyed an hour out and about yesterday. Looks like it's hotting up again at the weekend though.
Have a good one when you get there xx

Some challenges

Crafty friends #88 - Food/drink
Double D Challenge - Tea and/or coffee

Favourite Christmas Colours

Morning crafters, as promised here I am again. This time to share my DT inspiration for

Our challenge is just right for this time of year it's

Favourite Christmas Colours (remember to tell us why)

Our sponsor on this occasion is

and I used Polo and Oreo for my card. It's actually a CASE of one that I made last year for my buddy and DT colleague Annette. I was so pleased with it that I made it all over again, the only difference being I had to colour the edge of the card with Promarker as I didn't have purple cardstock to make the base.

Hope you will pop over and see what my team mates have made to inspire you and perhaps play along and add to your Christmas card pile!!

See you again soon xx

Challenges to join in

Digistamp Boutique Customer Competition

Whimsie Doodles - Anything Goes with a Christmas twist

Christmas Penguins

Hello everyone, it is my turn to showcase another fabulous bit of artwork from 

Sasayaki Glitter

This sweet image happens to be Christmas Penguins and was coloured with my Promarkers to compliment the pretty papers. My Cheery Lynn poinsettia die got an outing to make the gorgeous bloom and I finished off with some liquid pearls for a change.

I am entering my card here...

Noor Design UK #21 - Christmas

ABC Challenge - N for Noel

Digi Choosday Week 33 - Anything Goes

Lemon Shortbread #22 - anything Goes

I actually have time for a chat as the pups are being entertained outside. It's been an eventful few weeks. Our trip to Cornwall wasn't great as I had my first bout of carsickness in about thirty years for which there was only one cure...to come home. However, we did manage to get to Port Isaac which was really lovely.

I think we were meant to come back early because on our return Suzy was poorly so a trip to the vet was necessary and didn't end well.

She is now at rest with our Darling Mog in our garden where, come the spring, they will both be covered with beautiful flowers. I miss her.

To cheer ourselves up we spent the night in Torquay last Friday and had a wonderful time wandering round the town enjoying the fabulous weather and generally lifting our spirits with copious amounts of ice cream!!

Bowie and Bumble are turning into fine young dogs although they haven't been allowed to visit my work room yet, not sure I want my Promarkers buried in the lawn!!

Looking forward to getting more crafty time very soon. Thank you for your visits, they are much appreciated xx

Christmas Stuff

Hello bloggers me again with another Bugaboo inspired Christmas card to share.

 This one is the colour challenge.

Great colours I thought and I used Promarkers to colour up the cute  Sunbonnet Christmas Stuff.

A scrap of paper, just the right colour, was used as a mat and my most favourite poinsettia die got it's first airing of the year!!

Some other challenges to try my hand at

Pixies Snippets Playground #185

Papertake Weekly - Don't be a square

Creative Inspirations #322 - Let's colour

Toodles for now!! xx

Belated Wishes

I made a boo boo at the beginning of the month and didn't realize a Birthday was imminent until I turned over the calendar and with two days to send a card overseas being impossible I put together this little belated number to demonstrate what an " ass " I felt!!

Despite the lateness she loved it so I think I am forgiven!!

The image was a prize from Whimsy stamps from a couple of years ago that I found in my digi folder. Coloured with Promarkers to match the Kitsch paper and coordinating bow from Craftwork Cards. I pierced holes and used my letraset fineliner for faux stitching and the sentiment is from a Paper Smooches set.

 Luckily there a few challenges that suit too as the colourway rather lends itself to the Union Flag.

Creative Inspirations #319 - Your favourite
(patterned paper and Promarkers to name but two!!)
Moving Along With The Times - Sewing & Stitching
OSAAT #240 - Anything Goes/ Red White and Blue
Crafty Creations #292 - Red, White and/or blue
Crafty Girlz #3 - Anything Goes/Your country's flag
Pile it on #75 - Flag colours

Hope you have a good week,
 I shall be here on Wednesday with a Christmas number for you, so see you then xx

CCAYR May - Vintage Christmas

Pinch Punch first of the month!! May...how did that happen then? ...

...and as it's the start of a new month it's the start of a new challenge at

Christmas Cards All Year Round

and we are all about Vintage this time.

I used a shaped Craftwork Cards base which I covered with a couple of pieces of freebie paper having first embossed and rubbed the top one with pearl gilding wax.

 I used lots of dies to create interest and texture and to fill the space as the image although Vintage inspired was a little small.

Finally a posy, tied with seam binding and a stonking great dazzler to finish it off!! I struggle with this style so was actually really quite pleased with myself...if that's allowed!!

A few challenges to play 

Crafty Ribbons - Anything Goes 

Fab 'n' Funky #257 - Christmas

Penny's Paper-Crafty Challenge #225 - Anything but Square

MAWTT 

1 Image, 2 Papers, 3 embellishments (Flowers, poinsettia, pearls) and a pinch of glitter around the sentiment...phew!!

Simply Papercraft #3 - Anything Goes

Hope you will find time to join us this month and to boost your Christmas card stash too!!

Bye for now xx

Delightful doilies

Hello my crafty friends I hope you are well and raring to start another week.

I am here to share my card for the new challenge at

The Cutie Pie Challenge

The theme this time is Delightful Doilies and here is my card

I used a stamp by one of our sponsors Crafty Sentiments and coloured her with Promarkers to compliment the pretty papers ( I wrestled with myself for soooo long not to get these but couldn't resist any longer!!) which I also used to stamp  the sentiment on to, the tab and also the flowers. I finished it off with a knotted length of seam binding from our other fabulous sponsor Crafty Ribbons. The doily is actually a die cut piece of cream parchment, using another of my dies that haven't seen the light of day for a very long time!! 

I am entering these challenges

The Crafting Cafe - Favourite technique (colouring)
Lil patch of Crafty Friends #3 - Anything Goes
Not Just CArds #12 - Anything Goes
Crafts & Me  #153 - Add a Ribbon
Creative Fingers #66 - Anything Goes

Hope you will find time to dig out your doilies (and your cute images) and join us, you'd be most welcome!!

Strawberry

Another weekend already? Where do the weeks go? Anyway, thank you for dropping by today. During my productive  crafty session yesterday I put the finishing touches to this little beauty.

She was one of my "accidental" purchases that fell into my virtual basket while looking at the Funky Kits Sale in January. I can't find her in the shop so am guessing that she's out of stock at the mo. 

As well as making an attempt to use forgotten dies, I am also challenging myself to try new stuff and in this case finally had a go at painting with distress inks. 

I always look on in absolute awe at the wonderful art work achieved by Annette and Squirrel (among others), and although I do not have the bottles of re-inkers thought I would improvise by squishing DI on to my craft mat and pick up with a Koi water brush. Imagine my delight when I discovered I could do it!! 

So much so that I am even showing a close up of my effort.

The papers came from an American crafts pack that I picked up in TKMaxx. The banner is another of my abandoned unused  dies by Cheery Lynn and the sweet little stamp is by Technique Tuesday.

I'm off to play at these challenges

The Sugar Bowl #121 - Anything Goes

Stamping Sensations February - Anything Goes

My Craft Creations - Anything Goes

Crafting Musketeers #22 - Cute

Crafty Your Passion #247 - Anything Goes

The Crafter's Cafe #102 - Birthday Card

Have a lovely weekend whatever you are up to xx