Bear with Watering Can

My favourite season is Summer, when the days are at their longest and warmest. I really don't like the cold, wet weather of winter, and Autumn and Spring are still a little on the cool side.

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Card Recipe:

• Bear with Watering Can by Lili of the Valley
• Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers
• Whimsy Stamps Birthday Word and Shadow Die
• Nitwit Collections Papers
• Enamel dots by Hobbycraft

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Badger Birthday

My favourite card layout is cover a square base card with two pretty patterned papers top & bottom. I cover the join with some ribbon and add a double bow at the side. Often the image is die cut into a circle, and I'll add a posy of flowers on the diagonals. The final touch is a trio of pearls in the opposite diagaonal corners. I've used this sketch many many times, and still love the layout because it gives lots of interest, texture and embellishment to frame the image.

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Card Recipe:

• Badger with Birthday Gift digi image by Lee Holland
• Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers
• Flat Backed Pearls
• 6mm Satin Ribbon
• 15mm Organza Ribbon
• Nitwit Collections Papers
• Cherry Blossom
• Open Roses
• Mini Rosebuds
• Crealies Crea-Nest-Lies XXL65 Double Stitched Circles

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Koala Cuddles

Pastels are my favourite colours, and in particular pinks, blues and purples. I think they're easier on the eye and pretty.  I've used lots of pinks on today's card, even for the little koala critter for a bit of fun.

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Card Recipe:

• Koala on a Branch digi image by Lee Holland
• Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers
• 6mm Satin Ribbon
• Nitwit Collections Papers
• Crealies Crea-Nest-Lies XXL34 Double Stitched Squares

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Moo-velously Simple

Although I often add a lot of fancy embellishments to my cards, I do actually enjoy making clean and simple cards which keep the focus on the image, especially if it's a cutie!  

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Card Recipe:

• Cow digi image by Lili of the Valley
• Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers
• Nitwit Collections Papers
• Enamel dots from Hobbycraft

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Moush-room

I love creating cards with texture and embellishments, my favourites being paper flowers. I've added a posy of cosmos daisies, roses and tulips to this sweet birthday card.

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Card Recipe:

• Mouse on Mushroom digi image by Lee Holland
• Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers
• MFT Happy Birthday Circle Frame Die
• 6mm Satin Ribbon
• 15mm Satin Ribbon
• Nitwit Collections Papers
• Cosmos Daisy
• Open Roses
• Mini Rosebuds
• Tulip Flowers
• Flat enamel dots from Hobbycraft

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

In the Dog House

It's always nice to receive complements when you give a hand crafted item, and today's card is made for a sweet friend who always appreciates the work that's gone into a hand crafted card.  She usually opens her card in front of me and shows it around the office to all her co-workers. It's a really nice feeling to know that your creations are enjoyed and possibly kept rather than binned once the special occasion has passed.

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Card Recipe:

• Puppy digi stamp by Lee Holland
• Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers
• MFT Happy Birthday Circle Frame Die
• 6mm Satin Ribbon
• 15mm Satin Ribbon
• Nitwit Collections Papers
• Cherry Blossom
• Open Roses
• Hip Rosebuds
• Mini Rosebuds
• Crealies Crea-Nest-Lies XXL65 Double Stitched Circles

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Kingfisher Blue

Pastels are my favourites, as I find them calming on the eye.  In particular I like blue, pink and purple.  I've chosen this pretty pastel blue because the card and papers are some of my favourites.  I believe the image might be a robin, but I've chosen to colour him as a chubby kingfisher to continue the blue theme.

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Card Recipe:

• Digi image by Lee Holland on Etsy
• Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers
• Nitwit Collections Papers
• Crealies Crea-Nest-Lies XXL65 Double Stitched Circles

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Cute Bunny

I'm not sure elegant is a quality that would apply to me in any thread of my life, and when it comes to cute versus elegant in my crafting, it's definitely cute that wins the vote!  In particular cute critters.

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Card Recipe:

• Bunny with Flower digi stamp by Lee Holland
• Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers
• Flat Backed Pearls
• 15mm Satin Ribbon
• Nitwit Collections Papers
• Cherry Blossom
• Open Roses
• Hip Rosebuds
• Crealies Crea-Nest-Lies XXL65 Double Stitched Circles

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Daisy James

I've had a bit of a rummage through my craft stash and reaquainted myself with some of my older dies. I really love this daisy border die which creates such an effective frame around an image, adding a lot of interest and texture while still keeping it fairly flat for postage!

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Card Recipe:

• James with Daisy from Lili of the Valley
• Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers
• The Paper Boutique Thank You Square

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Bouquet Bear

Christmas would usually be my favourite crafting occasion, but as it's January I'm not feeling the festive vibe at the moment, so I've switched my allegiance to birthdays for the first challenge of 2026 at As You Like It Challenge.  Today's card is for my Auntie, whose birthday is next week.

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Card Recipe:

• Teddy Bouquet Digi image from Lili of the Valley
• Watercoloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers
• Flat Backed Pearls
• 15mm Satin Ribbon
• Nitwit Collections Papers
• Cherry Blossom
• Open Roses
• Mini Rosebuds
• Crealies Crea-Nest-Lies XXL65 Double Stitched Circles
• MFT Happy Birthday Circle Frame Die 
  

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Chimney Santa

I love using glitter on cards, especially to create the effect of snow. I love the sparkle and much prefer it to gold or silver card (which is also difficult to photograph).  I've used glitter card to create the snow layers on this die cut card. It's a tent fold, so does actually stand upright and is a fun shaped card for Christmas.

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Card Recipe:

• Santa Chimney cut file by Planeta Silhouette
• Smooth White Card 160gsm
• Plain Red Card 290gsm
• Woodstock Giallo Card 285gsm
• Black Plain Card 240gsm
• Iridescent White Glitter Card 220gsm

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Lilac Heffalump

Ribbon is one of my favourite embellishments, and I have boxes of it in dozens of colours and shades.  My favourite is satin, but today I've used a gingham one which tones better with my card colours. I love the 3D effect on a card which makes it look more handcrafted when it's gifted.

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Card Recipe:

• Elephant image by Lee Holland Digis
• Watercoloured using Distress Ink Reinkers
• Violet Plain Card 290gsm
• 15mm gingham ribbon
• Cherry Blossom
• Open Roses
• Mini Rosebuds
• Tulip Flowers
• Crealies Crea-Nest-Lies XXL67 Double Stitched Ovals

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Pirate Bear

Square cards are my favourite standard shape cardbase. I caveat that by saying I still love a fancy shaped card, like an apron shape for a food related image, or snowflake shaped cards for Christmas, but for my go-to cards, it's always a 6" square. Maybe it's the symmetry of them, but there's plenty of space for an image, pretty papers, and some fancy bits.  Today's card is for my Brother-in-Law, so I've kept the fancy bits limited to some fonts with a personalised typed sentiment.

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers

Card Recipe:

• James Pirate image by Lili of the Valley
• Nitwit Collections Papers
• MFT Stitched Border Die
• Typed sentiment

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Flower Gnome

This week at As You Like It Challenge we're asking you to share your favourite die.  This is an easy one for me, because I absolutely love my circle dies, of which I have a few with different stitching designs. But my most used is this simple single stitch design by MFT.  I love the variation of using a circle die on a square card, and the stitching is a lovely textured effect.  What did we do before these stitched edge dies became popular!

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers

Card Recipe:

• Flower Gnome image from Lee Holland Digis
• MFT Dienamics Stitched Circle Stax
• Nitwit Collections Papers
• Cherry Blossom
• Open Roses
• Organza Ribbon
• Satin Ribbon
• Flat backed pearls

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Autumn Badger

I really like making layered card with 3D elements, my favourites being flowers and ribbons. Many of my cards feature images framed with paper flowers and a double bow (a bowmaker is fabulous for this).  It does make mailing more bulky, but I love the effect of making it look more crafted than store-bought.

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers

Card Recipe:

• Badger digi by Lee Holland Digis
• Seam binding ribbon
• 3mm satin ribbon
• Nitwit Collections Papers
• Cosmos Daisy
• Open Roses
• Crealies Crea-Nest-Lies XXL65 Double Stitched Circles

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Flower Mouse

We're asking for your favourite season at As You Like It Challenge this week, and although I love Christmas crafting, I'm not a fan of winter and cold weather, so my favourite season is the summer with the long sunny days and warm weather.

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers

Card Recipe:

• Mouse with Daisy from Lili of the Valley
• Nitwit Collections Papers

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Kitty Cats

This week at As You Like It Challenge we're wondering whether you're a cat or dog person.  It's no question for me, as I've always had cats, currently two 2-year olds who are extremely efficient at keeping me on my toes.  One's a baby angel and her brother is, well, let's just tactfully say he's 'a handful'!  One moment he's rocketting around the house stripping the silicone out of our window frames, and the next moment he's demanding snuggles and is the sweetest cuddlepants possible.  It's a good thing I'm a cat person, because he's landed on his furry paws with us!

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers:

Card Recipe:

• Image from Lili of the Valley
• MFT Dienamics Stitched Circle Stax
• Smooth White Card 160gsm
• Nitwit Collections Papers
• Cherry Blossom
• Open Roses
• Mini Rosebuds
• Ribbon
  

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Bunny Tag

I really like making oversized tags which make gifting presents even more fun.  I enjoy wrapping and making the present look pretty with my tag tied on with ribbons and bows.

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers:

Card Recipe:

• Bunny image from Lili of the Valley
• MFT Dienamics Stitched Circle Stax
• Violet Plain Card 290gsm
• 6mm Satin Ribbon
• Nitwit Collections Papers
• Cherry Blossom
• Open Roses
• Mini Rosebuds
• Crealies Crea-Nest-Lies XXL Tag No.12 (with stitching)

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Pinks and Blues (with a touch of purple)

This week at As You Like It Challenge we want to know what your favourite 2 colour combos are.  For me, I prefer soft pastel pink and blue, but I also like purple, so I admit there's a touch of purple in my card too!  These are my go-to colours, and feel prettier than bold colours, although I have surprised myself and used a few bold citrus colours this year for summer vibes!  Anyway, today I'm focused on my pinks and blues (with a touch of purple!, but what's wrong with an extra colour beween friends!).  The gnome image stamp is from Lee Holland (Esty). I've watercoloured my image using Distress Ink Reinkers on Ecoline Watercolour card and added a typed sentiment in some fancy fonts.

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Happy crafting
Annette
xx

Embossed Lamb

This week at As You Like It Challenge we want to see your favourite style of embossing, whether it be wet or dry, folder or stylus etc.  While I love the effect of wet embossing, I find it a bit messy to do it myself, and I love the impact of some of my lovely embossing folders. I think they give a wonderful texture to cards, and I love the intricate design of some of my favourite folders. My card today features some embossed daisies which give a 3D texture frame to my watercoloured lamb panel.

Designed for:
As You Like It Challenge

Water-coloured on Ecoline Watercolour Card with Ranger Distress Ink Reinkers:

• Lamb: Antique Linen, Brushed Corduroy, Vintage Photo, Gathered Twigs, Tea Dye, Tattered Rose
• Grass: Twisted Citron, Mowed Lawn, Rustic Wilderness, Peeled Paint, Forest Moss
• Sky: Tumbled Glass

Card Recipe:

• Cute Lamb by Lee Holland Digis
• Woodstock Giallo Card 285gsm
• Mocha Brown Card 240gsm
• 15mm Spotty Ribbon
• Cherry Blossom
• Open Roses
• Whimsy Stamps Slimline Embossing Folder Daisies
  

Happy crafting
Annette
xx