As You Like It Challenge (DT) Pearls or Gems

 I had started this year with the plan of blogging more often, but here we are into April and I'm actually blogging less than before.  Sigh.  Must try harder.

As it is a Thursday, you just know I am here with my DT card for the new challenge over at

AS YOU LIKE IT

and the theme this time is Pearls or Gems (please explain your choice)

There's a time and a place for blingy gems, and that, for me, is Christmas for that little bit of sparkle. For the rest of the year, a more subtle effect is required, and that demands the softness of pearls.  I actually shocked myself by how many of both I have stashed away!

So for this little chap I have used

Whimsy Stamps Early Birds DP1018

Painted with Distress Inks (ReInkers) as watercolours

I've used a selection of old Nitwits paper pads (because the colours were right and they make me think of spring tulips)

Mama Elephant Mini Everyday Messages

A little snippit of Lawn Fawn 6x6 Really Rainbow

and some pink and blue pearls from my bottomless stash

Our sponsor for this theme is the lovely Tracy at

DIES TO DIE FOR

Do come over and share your fabulous makes with us

Hugs

As You Like It Challenge (DT) Favourite Non-Traditional Colour for Christmas

Hello peeps, so here we are, heading towards mid November and only

six and a half weeks to Christmas.  Eeeeeeeek!

So, if you are behind with your Christmas makes, AS YOU LIKE IT CHALLENGE

are here to encourage you with the new challenge of

Your Favourite Non-Traditional Colour for Christmas

For me, it's purple, I think it just feels a little bit luxurious, especially if it

is paired with with a glint of silver or gold

So, for this one I have used

High Hopes Stamps - Stackable Santa

Nitwits (LOTV) Snow Princess papers

Spellbinders Large Scallop Circle dies

Sentiment from Lili of The Valley

Mini snowflake punch from Hobbycraft

Santa watercoloured with Distress Inks (ReInkers)

The sponsor of this challenge is

Lawn Fawn

 

Hope to see you there

Hugs

As You Like It Challenge (DT) New or Recycled

 Sorry that I have been low-key for a while, I've just had so much else filling my time that my poor old blog has been sorely neglected.

Anyhoo, it's time for another new theme over at AS YOU LIKE IT CHALLENGE and

this time it is NEW OR RECYCLED (pleeeeeeeeeeeasse tell us why)

So, I'm really keen on recycling at home - our blue bin is always packed, and if I can use something again for a new purpose then that's a win BUT for crafting, I admit it, I do love using new stuff - everything fresh and shiny new.

For this romantic wittle wabbit I have used

Whimsy Stamps Wee Bunny

A selection of my precious NitWits papers

MFT sentiments

and a stencil of roses

All inked up with Distress Inks (ReInkers and Oxides)

Our sponsor of this theme is

POLKADOODLES

I hope you can come over to the challenge and join us.

Hugs

As You Like It Challenge (DT) Favourite Colouring Medium

Hey everyone, it's time for another challenge from the
AS YOU LIKE IT CHALLENGE
and this time our theme is (my personal favourite) Your Favourite Colouring Medium (tell us why!)

Like all my teamies, I've played with so many different colouring medium over the years.  My first love was watercolours, then I veered off course for a short affairs with Copics and ProMarkers, and then came the discovery of Distress Inks (ReInkers).  All the full of watercolour painting but with inks - I was like a pig in s....... very happy indeed.  I have lost count of the number of years I have been inking now but it is a lot.

I've raided my old Lili of The Valley stash and used this fabulous rubber stamp (remember those?) and collection of NitWit papers.

Oval dies are from Crealies XXL range

Sentiment is from Clearly Besotted

and corner die is an old unlabelled one

I do hope you will pop over and share with us your happiest way to colour.

Hugs

AYLI (DT) Flowers or Ribbons

Hello gang, hope this finds you well.  There's another new challenge starting

over at AS YOU LIKE IT today and the theme for this fortnight is

Your Favourite - Flowers or Ribbons

(and purrrleeeeeeeeease tell us why)

OK, so, here's the dilemma, I don't often use ribbons or flowers!

I have tried in the past, but "dog's dinner" comes to mind, froo-froo just isn't

my style.  So, I furtled about in the stash to see which of the two evils I have the

most of, and was horrified to find a rather sizeable collection of flowers, so I thought I had better use some!

The lovely things I have used

Stamping Bella Tiny Townies Garden Girls: Rose (stamp and die)

Nitwits paper pad (LOTV) Always & Forever

LOTV Krafty Christmas

Die-Namics Bold Stripes Cover Up

LOTV Circular Sentiments

Wild Orchid Crafts - small flowers and rose leaves

Image painstakingly painted with Distress Inks (ReInkers)

Our sponsor for this challenge is

Crafts U Love
£10 voucher

and all that remains is to wish our beloved leader, Annette, a VERY happy birthday for today!

Hope you will have a rummage in your own stash and then share your

fabulous makes with us.

Hugs to all

Squirrel xx

AYLI (DT) Favourite Paper Pad

Hello peeps, it is Thursday again and another challenge begins!  Today it is AS YOU LIKE IT and the theme for the fortnight is Your Favourite Paper Pad (and why).

There is a paper mountain (possibly even the whole range of mountains) growing in my craft space.  I am a sucker for pretty papers.  I have lots of favourite pads, but my all time, take it to a desert island, last pad on earth, favourite is from Nitwits (when they used to sell through LOTV) and it is Petal Fresh.  It so makes me think of freshly laundered cotton sheets that I can almost smell then on the washing line in the sunshine - the sheets, not the papers.

So, I have used the Petal Fresh papers, and have teamed them up with Stamping Bella Tiny Townies Garden Girl - Sweet Pea.  Painted with Distress Inks (ReInkers)  Sentiment is from Clearly Besotted.

The sponsor of this challenge is

Lawn Fawn
A stamp set and 6x6 pad of the winner’s choice

Hugs to all

Squirrel xx

In The Pink (DT) Anything Goes

Happy Pink New Year to you!  Yep, it's January, it's Thursday and it's the start of a new

IN THE PINK year, and to ease you in gently our first theme is Anything Goes.

Here's my DT card

OK, so the ingredients for this one are

MFT Pure Innocence Bookworm stamp

MFT Our Story stamp set

MFT Die-Namics Window die

MFT Die-Namics Stitched Sentiment Strips

Clouds paper is from Nitwits

Pink card is Hunkydory Adorable Scorable

Images painted with Distress Inks (ReInkers)

and our sponsor of this challenge is ALL DRESSED UP

So, what's stopping you, go and get PINK!

Hugs to all

Squirrel xx

Everyone Should Have A Squirrel

Short and sweet, everyone should have a squirrel (or three), especially red ones!

I have used

CC Designs Rustic Sugar Snowman With Squirrels

Painted with Distress Inks (ReInkers)

Sentiment is Whimsy Stamps holiday mini sentiments

Background snowflake from a Personal Impressions set

Papers are Nitwits/LOTV Frosty Christmas

Snowflake punches are Martha Stewart and X-Cut

and a single pearl from stash to finish

Hugs to all for a happy Monday

Love

Squirrel xx

Personally, I think everyone should have a Jenson Button too - F1 is going to be poorer without him

Can't wait to see what he gets up to next!

Out of my depth

Twice in one day.  Today I made a toad-in-the-hole for the first time in nearly 20 years.  To say I was nervous sounds ridiculous, I mean, I cook dinners every day of the week, so why should something as simple as a toad upset me?  Well, Mr Toad got his name from a passion developed over my mother's version of, yes, you guessed it, toad-in-the-hole.  My past forays into batter making have not been all that successful, apart from keeping the Winter Olympics supplied with ice-hockey pucks, so it was a somewhat scared Squirrel that shoved the big glass dish into the oven.

And the other out-of-my-depth moment was today's card.  OK, so maybe the card wasn't out of my depth but the challenge I'm entering is:

I made this to enter at

MFT Card Challenges - Wednesday Sketch No 307

For the card I used

MFT Polar Pals stamp set

Masked with Post-It Notes to create the row of bears

Painted with Distress Inks (ReInkers) and fussy cut

MFT Die-Namics double stitched rectangle die

Sentiment from the MFT Merry Everything set

Papers are all Nitwits (Winter Wishes sold by LOTV) except

for the kraft matting layers (which are a recycled envelope!)

Snowflake dies are Memory Box

Oh, and the toad-in-the hole?  Enormous but absolutely yummy!

Hugs to all

Squirrel xx

😻

SNSRC #2 (DT)

Hello chaps, well, here I am again with another Design Team make and this one is for Squirrel's Not So Random Challenge #2 that went live today at 8.00am.  It's the post before this one if you want to scroll back, or I shall add the link to the sidebar shortly.

So this is my One Colour make

I have used Roberto's Rascals Super Hero Henry from CC Designs

Painted with Distress Inks (ReInkers) with Polychromos Pencils for his hair

Papers are from an old Nitwits collection called, I think, Father Knows Best

Impression Obsessions word edge die

and the stars are the waste from a Martha Stewart border punch

Wonky stitched rectangle die from MFT Die-Namics

Custom sized card base

Quite a list of ingredients for a simple card!

Sorry the photo isn't the best quality, it's that time of year again - no daylight!

Hugs to all

SQUIRREL XX

In The Pink (DT) Flower Power

Morning all.  I have been a terrible blogger recently and only seem to be popping up on Thursdays with Design Team pieces.  I promise I will try harder, but my change of jobs in April means I have fewer hours in my day now, which makes evening blogging much more of a challenge!  Anyhoo, it's a Thursday, so here I am with another Design Team make.

It's a new challenge from those lovely ladies over at IN THE PINK and this time around the challenge is a perennial favourite (the gardeners among you will spot that pun) and it is FLOWER POWER.

It's up to you how you use flowers on your make, but we want PINK and we want FLOWERS!

Here is my DT make:

So, I have used Dyanne from Whimsy Stamps/Wee Stamps

and painted her with Distress Inks (ReInkers) with some Polychromos assistance

Papers are Nitwits from LOTV (now retired sadly)

The flowery border punch on the gingham is a Martha Stewart punch

and the white daisy border is also a Martha Stewart punch

Custom sized card base

I've not added a sentiment as she could be used for so many occasions

Our sponsor for this petalicious challenge is BUGABOO STAMPS

Looking forward to seeing you there.

Hugs to all

Squirrel xx

In The Pink (DT) Buttons and/or Bows

It's a another Pink Thursday chaps - a new challenge over at IN THE PINK and the theme this time around is Buttons and/or Bows!

Yes, it's that baby stamp again - I do have others, this just happens to be a favourite to colour

Baby Blanker from Lili of The Valley

Painted with Distress Inks (ReInkers)

MFT stitched hexagonal die

Sentiment from Lili of The Valley

Papers are Nitwits

Button stamp was a £1 purchase

Bow die from Lil'Inkers

and flower shaped button from stash

and our fabulous sponsor for the challenge is

Little Miss Muffet Stamps

$6 store voucher

Hugs to all

Squirrel xx

Almost a midway reminder

Hello folks, just dropping by with an almost midway reminder for Squirrel's Not So Random Challenge where the theme is Anything Goes - the challenge runs until the end of September so you still have loads of time to enter.

The word has got out at work that I make cards, so I was really chuffed when one of the ladies asked me (I've only been there four months) to make a birthday card for her golf-mad husband.

So for this I have used:

CC Designs Roberto's Rascals Golfing Tom

Painted with Distress Inks (ReInkers)

I cut around his head and shoulders so I could slip the die cut cloud paper behind

Paper is Nitwits, but darned if I can remember the make of the die

Sentiment is from Lili of The Valley

Grassy background sponge inked with Distress Inks

I'm pleased to say that the husband really liked it, and apparently sat for quite a while trying to work out how it had been made!

Anyway, reminder delivered, it's an Anything Goes theme, so nothing to stop you.

Hugs to all

Squirrel xx

AYLI (DT) Favourite - Shaped or Standard

Morning all, time for a new challenge over at AS YOU LIKE IT - and our theme this time is to choose your favourite card base - shaped or standard.

My most used card base is a square, doesn't matter what size - I just find the space so adaptable and I love the symmetry of it.  I think there must be a teeny weeny (and I mean microscopic) bit of neat-freak in me that makes the square so appealing!

OK, so I went a bit MFT loopy piggy mad with this one, but it was for my best mate, Pig.

MFT Hog Heaven painted with Distress Inks (ReInkers)

and MFT sentiment from Big Birthday Sentiments

Nitwits papers

MFT double stitched rectangle die

Cheeky peeking piglet was fussy cut by me!

and a few Post-It Notes for masking the stamps

and our sponsor is

Sweet Stamp Store

$10.00

Don't forget that you must explain your choice of shaped or standard!

Hogs to all

Squirrel xx

Ramona Loves Cake (don't we all)

It seems really odd posting this on the same day that the challenge I made it for is posting, on my own blog, but otherwise I wouldn't be able to tell you anything about the card!

Today is the launch of Squirrel's Not-So-Random Challenge.  Regular readers will know about Squirrel's Random Challenges, and they have become quite popular so we're going to be regular now, once every two months, and today's the day.  The challenge post will appear at 8.00am so do come back for it!

Anyhoo, here is my first DT card for my own challenge (I can't tell you how weird this feels).

I just lurrrrrrrve these Ramona stamps from Stamping Bella

This one is Ramona Loves Cake

Painted entirely with Distress Inks (ReInkers)

I've used the Lawn Fawn Puffy Clouds die for the top border

and some luscious red paper from Nitwits for the matting layers

The totally appropriate sentiment is from My Favourite Things

Thanks for popping over - don't forget to come back in a bit for the challenge launch

Hugs to all

Squirrel xx

AYLI (DT) Favourite Papers

Hello AYLIers, it's your favourite day chaps, time for a new challenge with the talented

AS YOU LIKE IT team

This time the challenge is a tough one, it's your Favourite Papers - and please remember that you need to tell us why they are your favourites.

What a silly thing to make us choose!  Favourite papers, favourite pet, same thing.  OK, if I am forced to make a decision based on what papers do I go to most often, then it's going to be Nitwits, which is what I used for this card.....or Dovecraft, which I didn't.

So for this I have used one of the Flower Fairies from Wee Stamps

Painted with Distress Inks (ReInkers) to match with the

Country Lady paper pad from Nitwits (sold by LOTV)

Sentiment is by Kaisercraft

Top die is from Tonic, one of a set of three

and the one underneath that is a Joanna Sheen edger die I think

and of course we have a super sponsor for the challenge and it is

Crafts U Love

£10 voucher

It's your turn now, you have two weeks to rummage through that stash of papers and choose YOUR favourite!

Hugs to all

Squirrel xx

In The Pink (DT) Use a Rubber Stamp

Okay, okay, it's not my week on the IN THE PINK job share, but I am sneaking in as an extra because I couldn't resist the theme of Use A Rubber Stamp.

I have more rubber in my life than Ann Summers, rofl!

The stamp I have used is Lucy with Teddy from CC Designs

Papers are all Nitwits

Window-frame die from Die-Namics

Hugs die from Lil' Inkers

Image painted with Distress Inks (ReInkers) and Polychromos Pencils

Our sponsor (£10 voucher) for this rubbery challenge is

DIES TO DIE FOR

So, what's keeping you, go and get stamping!

Hugs to all

Squirrel xx

You dig it?

There was some debate here at Squirrel Towers earlier in the Spring about what to put in the little bit of flowerbed we have by the shed.

Last year, we filled everything with flowers, which was very pretty, and Toad wanted to do the same again this year, but I dug my paws in (dug, geddit?) and suggested we grow a few veggies.  So, our tiny little bit of this earth is currently hosting a crop of sweetheart cabbages and patio peas.  

In fact, with a bit of luck, there might be some peas edible soon.  We're not picking them too early, I don't want green freckles on my dinner, but don't want to leave it too late either.

Anyway, this rambling leads me to this:

This dinky little card was made using one of the Vegetable Patch bunnies from Clearly Besotted

The sentiment is from an older CB set called Garden Fresh which I can't find on the website now so it looks like it's been retired

Papers are scraps of Nitwits

and yes, it's that MFT double stitched rectangle die again

Image painted with Distress Inks (ReInkers) and a small brush!

Hugs to all

Squirrel xx

And more elephants

There's a bit of a joke with a certain friend over a customer who wanted an elephant card.  Said customer is, fair enough, quite particular but not very forthcoming with information, so for her daughter in law's birthday I ended up with a surplus of elephant cards.......it took a few makes for her to choose one she really liked (which was nothing like the original brief!).

So when said certain friend's husband emailed me asked me to make his anniversary card to said friend, and he mentioned the elephants, it was a challenge I could not refuse.

I used the MFT Adorable Elephants stamp set, aren't they just the cutest?

The little twiddly heart between them is in the set too

Coloured with Distress Inks (ReInkers)

Sentiment from Paper Smooches

Martha Stewart border punches, top and bottom

Purple papers are Nitwits and the pink is Dovecraft I think (but might not be)

I think said friend was happy, her husband certainly was

Hugs to all

Squirrel xx