C'est L'Amour... at Crafty Cardmakers and More...

Hello!!

Two posts from me in one day... whatever next!!

I sooo needed the chance to get inky and creative this weekend, it's been a busy couple of weeks at work for one reason or another, but my work laptop stayed in it's bag, as my crafty stash was calling!!  It might mean a busier week for me next week, but my soul needed the break :-)

This fortnights challenge over at Crafty Cardmakers and More is Love, Love, Love...

... but maybe that should be l'amour, l'amour, l'amour in my case, with my nod towards Parisian romance :-)

 

Anyway, this weekend was also my brother and sister-in-laws wedding anniversary, so I made a wedding anniversary card.  I used some Making Memories papers from my stash, topped with a Stampin Up Postcard Stamp that has been distressed with various distress inks and has had the edges roughed up

The main sentiment is a ticket made up of a plain ticket stamp stamped in grey, which has been overstamped with a love sentiment stamped in brown then distressed with assorted distress inks, but slightly different tones to that of the postcard beneath

I really love this birdcage charm from Live and Love Crafts as it's not too twee!

 

 And I just had to pop some of my lovely pins (also from Live and Love Crafts on here).  Again the postcard is just peaking out underneath...

I've not used flowers on a card in ages!  It wasn't a conscious thing, I'd popped the box away and kinda forgot about them I guess :-)  You can just see the gorgeous rhinestone lace and subtle die cut in this one :-)

Hope you like this card as much as I do

Thanks for stopping by

Sue xx

Hearts and Valentines GDT at Crafty Boots

Hello!

My first post today is a lovely one... I was asked by Crafty Boots to join them for this fortnights challenge as a GDT member - whoo hoo!!  What an honour to be asked to join such a talented group of ladies :-)

The theme is Hearts and Valentines... and I decided to make a simple Valentines card using some banners and a heart die... I'm trying to go for a bit less fussy cards than I normally do - and I like the clean lines of this one!

I curled the edges of the banners slightly and stitched the top edges.  No idea where the sentiment came from, it might be a Kanban one!

Thanks for stopping by

Sue

xx

In the Pink @ Ladybug Crafts Ink

Hello!!

Can you believe it's the second week of February already!  Where is the time going :-D

We're a poorly household at the moment - my small son has the flu and is feeling very sorry for himself.  Actually, I feel quite sorry for him too, he laid on the sofa all day yesterday, and was so unbelievably hot!  For a usually independent 5-year old he was wanting his mummy more than usual (that bit was quite cute really!), his legs didn't belong to him and he didn't want anything to eat, so I was passing him his drink with a straw, wiping his face with a damp flannel, and carrying him to the loo as the stairs wiped him out :-(.  Daddy is looking after him today - what's the betting I go home and the pair of them are still where I left them this morning??

I've done something nasty to a tendon in my big toe, OMG - ouch!!!  Maybe it's because I'm dosed up on painkillers that made me so calm yesterday!  All I did was bend down to put some washing in the machine and it kinda pinged :-(  It better sort itself out soon as we've got a black tie do at the end of the month, and I'm NOT wearing flats when I've got a gorgeous pair of heels bought specially (actually, two gorgeous pairs of heels, I couldn't decide which I preferred!!)

Anyway, enough of me moaning, onto today's card, which is for this weeks LCI Challenge as chosen by the lovely Laurie who wants to see your Pink plus One creations!

Now this challenge has been met with some headaches for the team, some of whom are complete pinkaphobes!  I'm not overly keen on pink as a dominant colour, but think it looks pretty good with white and these Teresa Collins papers are detailed enough to keep a bit of interest.

I've had these shaped cards in my stash for ages, and I've never been that happy with anything I've made with them, but I saw an easel card at a craft show a while back that used shaped cards, and decided to "lift" the idea.  I wish knew who to credit for the original idea, or even what stand it was on, I'm so sorry if it was you!  A bit of organza ribbon acts as a stopper for the easel, and I've added a metal embelishment with a pink epoxy dot in the middle.

I've used Tic-Tac Love and this image is available from Ladybug Crafts Ink - isn't it cool!  I've used it here for HB's valentines card, but I think it's great for anniversary's, engagement's or any other romantic occasion.  I decided to fussy cut it, and 3D the "missing" pieces onto the edges of the main image - in reality they are further away - my friend Lisa has used the same image but she wasn't naughty with the scissors like me!!  As always, I've coloured my image with copics - I love images like these as this one colours up really quickly (well, for me anyway, I usually fuss and it takes me AGES!!), and so are perfect for those "oops... I (nearly) forgot" moments!!

A Cheery Lynn die acts as a frame behind the image and a Marianne florish, flowers and pins finish my card off.  I don't think it's too pink for HB!

Please may I enter these challenges

2 Sisters - Hearts

A Gem of A Challenge - Hearts/Valentines

Allsorts - Valentines

Card Making Mama's  - Love

Card Mania - Is this love that I'm feeling

Cheery Lynn - Frame It

Crafts For Eternity - Be My Valentine

Craft your Passion - My Valentine

Crafty Ribbons - Anything goes with Ribbon

Creative Stamp Friends - Valentines/Hearts

Digi Haven - Love/Valentine

Fashionista Challenge  - Valentines

Love to Create - Feelin' the Love

Make It Monday - Anything Goes

One Stitch at a Time - Anything Goes

One Stop Craft - Love is in the Air

Pile It On - Shaped Cards

Totally Papercrafts - Valentines/Love

Thanks for stopping by

Sue xx

Scrapbook Sisters Challenge - Anything Goes

AHHHH!!!

I'm sorry that this post originally went live with no pictures and no text, I had typed it up early Wednesday morning, and all was well, and posted it just fine - or so I thought, but when I looked later it was ALL gone.  By then HB had taken the laptop with him, so I thought I could redo it from work, but typically the internet was down and HB was away last night, so there was nothing I could do but wait until tonight to get on and sort it all out :-D

The sooner my PC gets fixed the better!!

Anyway, enough with the drama, onto the card!

The challenge over at Scrapbook Sisters this week is

Anything Goes

And I know all the DT are really looking forward to seeing whatever you have been up to this week :-D

I decided to do another Valentines/Love card and decided to go with non-traditional colours and use my new IndigoBlu stamp and gilding flakes, charm and part of the Memory Box die I got the other day.

I'm getting quite into this gilding thing, I like how you could do the same stamp again and again but each one would look different due to the mix of the flakes.

I'm also getting quite into the distressing of seam binding, and I like how this one looks against the brown and kraft CS

The sentiment was stamped on a Memory Box die cut, and the heart button was from a recent trip to John Lewis.

This card is quite different for me as it's quite simple, but I like it :-D

Please may I enter these challenges

Crafting for all Seasons - Love is in the air

Crafty Creations - Swirly Whirly

My Mums Craft Shop - Love is in the air

Simon Says Stamp - Love is in the air

Truly Scrumptious - Love and Hearts

Party Time Tuesday - Valentines

Crafy Boots - Valentines

Hooked on Craft - Hearts

One Stitch at a Time - Love

Card Patterns - Sketch

Crafty Cardmakers - Monochrome

Craft Your Days Away - Get Stitchy With It

Thanks for stopping by

Sue

xx

Ladybug Crafts Ink Challenge #53 - Loves Me, Loves Me Not

Hello!!

Sorry I am a bit late posting this week’s card for Ladybug Crafts Ink Challenge, as you may know my PC has gone wrong and I am relying on HB’s laptop, which is OK except for when he forgets to bring the charger with him and hands it over with only 20 minutes battery remaining and it goes flat halfway through me trying to post my card and upload my pictures!! Ahhhh!!!!  No problem I thought, I'll use my phone, but no, blogger and apple appear to have fallen out cos I could post nothing, and then I tried at work during my lunchbreak but couldn't get on there either (darn firewalls!!)

Anyway, I'm here at last!! The challenge this week has been set by Julie and she has set the theme of

Love Me, Love Me Not

I just had to use Magnum, one of the Add On’s that go with him and one of theMagnum sentiments - LOVE this one, just purrfect for this image :-) The papers are by Echo Park, and are quite busy, but Magnum’s a big cat, so I think he can take it :-D

Isn't he a cutie and he is so usable with the add ons for all sorts of occasions

I added a touch of glossy accents to his nose, eyes and the heart in the box, just for a bit of sheen.  I just love colouring him as a Tabby by swishing in from the outer edge with a darker pen

Please may I enter these challenges
The Stamping Boutique - Valentines
Anything Goes Challenge - To the one I love
Top Tip Tuesday - Valentines
House of Gilli - Love is in the Air
Make It Monday - Anything Goes
Paper Pretties - Love
Stamps R Us - Valentine/Love
The Shabby Tearoom - Love is in the Air + photo inspiration
Paper Sundaes - Valentines
Sweet Stampin - Animals

Thanks for stopping by

Sue xx

Soooooo late!!

I am sooo late with my post for this weeks Scrapbook Sisters challenge this week!!

I don't know why but I hated everything I was making and decided to cut myself some slack and took a step away from the crafting table for a few days, although I'm not sure that there is mojo about to appear, but at least I like what I have created :-D.  Hopefully the pressures I have been under at work will ease up a bit this week as I sure that is bleeding my brain dry of any creativity!!

The theme is My Sweet Valentine and I used one of the gorgeous dancer images by Gayle - I was torn between this one and this one, but since we were at a black tie do last night and I was wearing a shorter frock this one seemed more approproate.  Not that we did any dancing though, although oh my, there were some real sights to be seen on the dancefloor!!

Anyway, enough with the waffle, here's my card

Hmmm, what else to say about this card - the papers are from a recent scrapbook class and are by Echo Park, the heart die cut was a pressie from my secret santa, and the sentiment is a combination of a Whimsey ticket and a fancy Love text stamp but I have no idea who it is by!

Better late than never huh?  Actually feel really awful as I've never missed a challenge posting going live, ever!!  Just couldn't create for the life of me!!  Before I go, did you know there is a Scrapbook Sisters DT call at the moment - if you are interested head on over to the blog for more information

Please may I enter these challenges?

One Stitch at a Time #97 - Round and Round

Robyn's Fetish #91 - Love

Sentimental Sundays - Die Cuts

Card Patterns - Sketch

Make It Monday - Anything Goes

Thanks for stopping by, hope you have had a good weekend :-D

Sue xx

TGIF!!! And after two days of valentines day cards for the kids, here's hubby's (shhh!) don't tell him!!

Oh my word, what a week!!

It all got a bit too much yesterday and I was on the verge of tears at work (ok, so I did the girly thing and flapped my hands uselessly in front of my eyes before beating a hasty retreat to the safety of the ladies loo!!), we'll see how it goes today!!  I hate getting all girly and emotional at work, but it was one of those moments when I was either going to cry or lose it, neither of which is a particularly good thing to do :-(.  I have to say I was helped through the day by a package that landed on my desk amd kept me going when the spirit was week... but more on that in a minute!!

Right, so I needed to relax more than ever, so downloaded one of the new digi images from Scrapbook Sisters called His Shoes.  Now this might seem a bit of an odd image for me to use for HB's valentines day card, but I think it is perfect - firstly I have coloured it the same colours as his favouite boots, and secondly after being married for 13 years we are kind of like a pair of old boots - give each other a kick everynow and then, but one is pretty ineffective without the other (awww...)

Anywhoos, enough with the smultz, onto the card!

I've used the Happy Together papers by Fancy Pants, and then wound a bit of twine round the panel and threaded my NEW ribbon that the lovely Kerry sent me as a thanks for helping her make samples to take with her to display on the LCI stand at CHA (there are pics on her blog and here if you want to take a look)

Now Kerry was incredibly generous and also got me some ticket stamps - these are from Papertrey Ink as is the ribbon and they are all mixey-matchy with three different borders and loads of text too, I'm just gutted that these aren't available commercially outside of the US and the postage is too much to warrant me ordering anything else!  Or maybe that's a good thing!!

Now I don't have a matching die so after stamping the image up using the various elements I cut it into a rectangle and used a woodware circle punch to nick out the corners - not quite as good as a die but not bad!! I then distressed the Kraft CS with assorted distress inks.

The main image is, as ever with Gayle's designs a dream to colour!  I tried to get the laces to match the ones in his boots - not that successful but hey, it's the thought that counts!!

I'm itching to get my hands on some of the other new shoe digi's in the collection and have a play :-)

Right, that's quite enough from me today, apart to say I hope you have a great day and if you are going to the Scrapbook Sisters Scrap Attack tonight I'll see you there!!

Thanks for stopping by

Sue xx

P.S. Please can I enter this card into these challenges... thank you!!

Ooh La La Challenge - For Someone Special

Fab n Funky Challenge - Tempting Texture

Paper Romance - Clean and Simple Valentines (OK, I know this is might be stretching it a bit, but this is CAS for me!!)

Sarah Hurley - Love, Be My Valentine

Southern Girls Challenge - Blue and Chocolate

Crafty Catz Challenge - Valentines/Love

Stamp Something - Something for your Valentine

And cos there's two of them...

...kidlets that is, I have to make two Valentines Day cards, cos a three year old and a nearly nine year old just won't share, and the small one will get the hump if I give the big one a card and not him, tusk, and they say girls are difficult!!

Mind you after his behaviour yesterday I'm not sure the small monster deserves it (we had to have a chat about acceptable behaviour... again...), but I just couldn't let it slide.  Honestly my eldest was (and still is) so different, so easy, that I was lulled into a false sense of security!  Sam is just such, well, a boisterous boy at times that he leaves me frazzled!!  That said he can also be kind, caring, loving, funny and downright cute so it's not all bad :-)

So I made him his own card last night, using the same image, sentiment and colours as I did for his brother to ensure no arguments but different so they know which one is which :-)  Nothing too flash or fancy, but I think he'll like it :-)

For this card I used the sketch from this weeks Friday Sketchers Challenge

I'd also like to enter these challenges

Praire Fairy Friday - For a Sweetheart (cos my son can be, when he wants to!!)

Stamp Something - Use a Digi

Stampin' For the Weekend - St Valentines Day

Crazy 4 Challenges - Valentines Day Card

Secret Crafter Challenge - Valentine

Kenny K Krafty Girlz Challenge - A Card for Your Sweetheart + Photo Inspiration

Right gotta get these two sorted for school and nursery then get myself into work (thank goodness it's Thursday!!)

Thanks for stopping by

Sue xx

Scrapbook Sisters Challenge 22 - My Valentine

Hi, another week has flown past and it's time for another Scrapbook Sisters Card Challenge, and this weeks challenge is

My Valentine

After doing a couple of fairly busy cards I decided clean and simple was the way to go, and I'm going to be giving this one to my little boy (cos I do love him :-)  ) so didn't want to go fully down the flowers and sparkle route, cos at nearly 9 he wouldn't like it!!  The teddy bear I think I can get away with!

Here's my card

I found this cute little image over at Kenny K, and I have coloured him with copics and added glossy accents to his eyes and nose and to the heart, before layering him up on a heart cut out on my Cricut which I domed a bit and stuck to the card with 3D pads, the tulle (I've rediscovered this stuff!!) is tied round a little silver heart charm, and the sentiment is made up with a Paula Pascal set.  I couldn't help myself though, and added a bit of bling to the corners

And I decided to use this totally apt little Meljens sentiment for the inside, and coloured the little hearts in with copics

Looking forward to seeing your creations this week!!

Sue xx