Make A Wish – Wallflower card for CVC

This is card three in my Wallflower collection (one more to come) and I just adore the colours on this one – in fact I know exactly the person who will receive this for his birthday later in the year, he loves his birds (the feathered ones that is) so this fits perfectly.

Again I have used a 6 x 6 cut from a 12 x 12 from The Wallflower paper stash and I also used Tim’s new Courtyard Framework die, although there’s not much of it left to see, it just peeps out from behind the love sentiment.

Other supplies used -

Spellbinders die from my supplies

Movers and shapers LOVE die

Cash Key

Stamps – simple sayings

Tim Holtz paper string

Feathers, rusted heart wings and raffia from my supplies

I would love it if you popped over to see the card in fuller detail over at Country View Crafts Updates blog.

Thank you for stopping by today.

Have a wonderful; weekend.

hugs Brenda xx

What are you known for?

I like to join in with the Simon Says Stamp and Show challenge when I can and this week the theme really caught my attention and although I find it difficult to decide what I could be known for I know what my favourites are and I guess that's probably what others would say about me. That is vintage, shabby chic, distressing and all things Tim, and of course my favourite sewing theme. So combining what I could of these I found a box to alter and went for it, wanting to make myself somewhere to keep some of my little vintage bits and pieces of threads and spools etc.

Have I whet your appetite?

This is the box I started with, yes it is real and its what my sunglasses came in a couple of years ago. I have to say I got them for an extremely good price at the time.

I started by dipping all the sides in distress inks, keeping them light as I didn't want to make this piece too grungy.  

Then I made a start on the panel to go on top of the lid. More distress inks, masks and clear embossing powder.

But look what new stamps popped through the post box this week, oh yes the wonderful sewing blueprint stamps from Mr Tim Holtz himself, they are just divine - and I was so naughty I bought the minis as well.

I used the Alphabetical strip die that I bought when I was with Terry in California last August.

The cotton reel labels are ones that I scanned and printed off.

... and a close up of the blueprint dress form. It's fabulous. I stamped it over the top of the embossing and used distress markers to colour it in.

I die-cut a spellbinders border to go round the box and sewed the edge of it before attaching.

Well I hope that those of you who know me would think of me this way.

As I have 'spruced this box up' it gives me another chance to play at the Frilly and Funkie challenge blog too; Happy Daze have a recycling theme this month and Marjie has kindly reminded me that Eclectic Paperie want altered boxes.

Happy Friday. Thanks for visiting me and taking a peek at my project today. I hope it inspires you to alter a box and make something useful that you can keep things in.

Have fun.

hugs {brenda} x0x

PanPastels #34 - All about stripes

This week at PanPastels UK the challenge theme is all about stripes, so make sure you show us your interpretation and remember you do NOT have to use PanPastels to be eligible to enter.

My sample today is rather different for me. Rather than make my own backing paper I have used DP from The Station paper pad by MME and added some PPs to it.

I have also used spellbinders labels 20 and stamps to create the focal piece and sentiment.

I hope you are having a great weekend, but before I go I thought I would share a few more holiday photos with you.

Me and Ella (aged 6) - photo taken by Maddison (aged 4)

Becca, Ella and Maddison

Ben (my son) and Bev and the girls

Pelicans everywhere waiting for the fishing boats to come in.

Couldn't resist the Coke truck!! At the outlet centre - well we had to shop sometime didn't we?

The outlet was very near the Mexican border. 

These two girls just love to play around - that's Maddie (my daughter) in the background.

More photos to come another day - hope you won't get bored with them lol.

Take care.

hugs {brenda} xox

LIIU - Embellish It

Welcome to another long bank holiday weekend here in the UK and I am showcasing my DT contribution for LIIU. The theme for this fortnight is - Embellish It - and the sponsor is Anna Belle Stamps  http://www.annabellestamps.com/.  AnnaBelle Stamps is an Australian craft business and offer their own exclusive line of clear photopolymer stamps made in the U.S.A., Digi stamps and papers, as well as gorgeous embellishments, twines and ribbons!  They also have weekly challenges on their blog and twice monthly a blog hop featuring one of the newly released sets with prizes!

My piece, called 'Inspire', has  numerous techniques involved in the making, -  colour wash over torn paper pieces, masking and misting, cracked paint effect, texturing with muslin AND I lost count of the number of layers of paint, ink, fabric, paper, frame, cut out stamp etc. It started as a piece of recycled card from a box and then to finish and embellish it I have used punches, glitter, pearls, butterfly, buttons, flowers and a bead. I haven't made it into a card or a hanging, but I have simply left it as a piece of art.

My shabby flower using the TH Tattered Florals die

There are at least 5 layers on this part alone. The butterfly is a MS punch. The wings are from the TH Heart Wings die.

Apart from the LIIU theme other challenges that have inspired me for this piece are -
Simon Says Stamp and Show - Buttons
Gingersnap Creations - Mists
Stamptacular - Pile It On - at least 5 layers
Sunday Stamper - Wind beneth my Wings

I used TH scallops on the edge die and Spellbinders 12" classic lace border. On the fragment piece I used alcohol inks, stamped a butterfly with archival ink and rubbed it off to see the image through the inks. I also used TH Lost and Found paper stash and cut out vintage photo mages and stuck behind the film strip.

Other Supplies
Paper Artsy Fresco Finish chalk acrylics - honey dew, london night, vintage lace, old gold.
Paper Artsy fresco Finish crackle glaze.
Paper Artsy Ink and the Dog stamps - One Penny 2
Artist acrylic paint - white
Distress stains - weathered wood, walnut stain
Distress re-inker tumbled glass
DIs - stream, slate, ginger
Tattered Angels Glimmer Mists - blue skies, vanilla breeze
Spellbinders - classic frame
Ice stickles - crystal ice
Sissiz phrase die - inspire

luv and hugs {brenda} xoxox

Vintage typewriter

Oh what a beautiful morning, oh what a beautiful day ........

Good morning bloggers, it's a fabulous bright sunny day with clear blue skies and the cherry tree in the back garden is blossoming - what more could I ask for on my birthday?????

Firstly a huge thankyou to my teamies at MAWTT for their fabulous birthday cards and they can never tell me again they can't do vintage - they have all made me a card in my style and they really are the best. THANKS GIRLS.

Secondly is anyone going to Birmingham NEC next weekend? I will be there on Sunday the 27th, so let me know if you are around and we can say hello. I am already going to seek out Sarah - you must let me know where you will be Sarah!!
So onto my card for today. My inspiration came from the Gingersnap challenge - typewriters, with a monthly theme of the working world and Simon Says Stamp - which is Birthday.

The typwriter image is a download from the Graphic Fairy and I overlaid it onto some vintage text paper that I lightened and blurred in Photoshop Elements, cut with and mounted on spellbinders mats with some ribbon and a Graphic 45 background paper. For the sentiment I found a typewriter key font and downloaded, printed it out, edged with DI and stickles. Most of it has been stapled together and I added a small metal clip and a red paperclip to give more of the office feel to it.

Challenges to have fun with
Gingersnap Creations - Typewriters
Simon Says Stamp - Birthday
Crafty Cardmakers - Fabric
My Partner in Crafting Crime - Retro Cool
Ooh La La - It's a man thing
Little Red Wagon - Office Supplies
Really Reasonable Ribbon - One for the boys
A huge thank you to the girls at Play Date Cafe - I was chosen as one of the Fab 4 last week. Woo hoo.

Have a great weekend everyone.

luv and hugs {brenda} xoxox

Compendium of Curiosities week 17

Good morning - yes it's morning and I need to get to bed cos I am off early to go to The Stamp Attic later and a workshop with Hels. But I just had to get this post up very quickly so that I can enter the CCC at Studio L3 which this week is fragment charms.

Please go to P. 64 of Tim's book to see what they are and how to use them. It's the first time I have had a go with them and they can create the most adorable embellishments for a whole variety of works of art.

Mine is a Nestabilities frame, a grungepaper deer, DIs, embossing powders and stamps, then some Crafty Bitz embellishments and of course my fragment charms. I managed to make it this evening and was determined to get it done. I've worked all week and had to work all day today, except for an hour in the garden doing some autumn clearing. The family came round for dinner this evening, so there hasn't been much time to play, but here it is.

Apologies for the photo, but I have had to lay this down even though it's going to be hung on one of my doors at Christmas, and the light is awful. Hopefully I'll get a better one in the light if I get home in time later on.

My sincere apologies to blog buddies. I just haven't got round to seeing anyone this week and I'm behind with my DT commenting too. I hope to catch up soon, but it could take me 5 or 6 weeks to be back in the blogging world properly. Please stay with me, I promise I will get there.

I hope your weekend is going well. Have a great Sunday.

Luv B xxxx

First MAWTT DT card

Hi Everyone

It's so great to be able to post my first card as a design team (DT) member for 'Moving Along With The Times' (MAWTT). I have had an incredible week getting to know new people and what the expectations are of working with a new team -  and what lovely people they are, so helpful and kind. Thanks girls for making it an easy transition.

So here it is using the fantastic sketch created by Hazel.

I still want to use challenges to stretch me and take me outside my comfort zone at times so I have used the theme of fairies for Gingersnap Creations, a rub on 'Happy Birthday' sentiment for the Creative Belli challenge, stitching to link with the Crafty Creation challenge, the colours raspberry, aqua, kraft and white for the Play Date Cafe and embossing for La la Land.

The image is from the Cemerony Share blog and is soo cute, the colours fitted well for the theme today.  I have used a Spellbinders pendant called Fleur De Lis, to frame it. The DPs are ones I have organised into a box and not kept a note of where they come from, I shall have to try and be more careful so that I keep the same make together. The flowers I made using the Nellie Snellen punch with embosser and the stamen punch. I used DI worn lipstick and tattered rose on them to give them a more weathered, vintage look. I had to include a butterfly and a bird as they seem to almost be my trade marks on many of my cards.

Other supplies
Distress inks - Broken China, Worn Lipstick and Vintage Photo
Cosmic Shimmer Aqua Twinkles
Stickles - Star Dust
Distress Stickles - Tattered Rose
Glossy Accents
Sakura Gelly Roll glitter pen (on the stamens)

Have a wonderful day, not long before the weekend and Ella is having her 4th birthday party. I will be there.

Take care. Luv and hugs.  Brenda xxxx


Challenge List
Gingersnap Creations - Fairies
Creative Belli #93 - Rub-Ons
Crafty Creations #72 - It's  a stitch up
La La Lands #43 - Embossing

Friend birthday card

Happy Monday everyone and Happy Birthday to my best friend Margaret. I have made her this card which I hope she will like, it's another 'shabby' creation.


I used three pieces of paper for the background, including a piece of music from Mozart. The sentiment is from the TH Shabby French collection and I have mounted it on a Spellbinders 'In Spades' pendant which was distressed with Tattered Rose and I edged it and the sentiment with Aqua Cosmic Shimmer Twinkles. The papers have been distressed with Vintage Photo and I made the embellishments adding a sticker, button and flower.


I feel the overall effect has worked well and I am pleased with the way it has come together.


It's beautiful sunshine in this neck of the woods, so I hope you are having some cheerful weather wherever you are.

Happy birthday Margaret, have a lovely day and to you all, enjoy the week and thankyou for looking.


Love and hugs.  Brenda xxxx

Challenge List
Papertake Weekly - Shiny, sparkly and special   Very special card for my best friend
Your next stamp - Cut it out and pop it up           The sentiment and the mini-tag have been 'popped up'.
La La Land Crafts Blog - Anything goes
For Fun Challenges - an anything card using a stamp   The sentiment has been ink stamped.
Cute Card Thursday - Someone Special               That's Margaret
Digi Doodle #7 - Ribbon       Yep that's there
Stamp Something - Celebrate something               Definitely
Allsorts - Birthdays                 This fits the bill
Stamp with fun - Stripes           Two papers have got stripes on them
Practical Scrappers - Patterned Paper    Four different ones if you include the music paper!
Sweet Pea Stampers - Paper piecing      Four papers pieced together her