Frosty - Rick St Dennis/Incy Wincy

Good evening my lovelies!

This is a bit late as I've been out all day Christmas shopping in Norwich - my wallet is now empty :o(

Anyhoo, over at Incy Wincy we have another fantastic challenge for you this week. Stripes! 

Plus, we have two sponsors this week!

The fabulous Rick St. Dennis - win 2 digis or a 25% discount coupon from Rick's Zibbet store (it's the winner's choice)...

... and Craft Classes Online - win a free seat to an online workshop valued at $25 or less!

The Rick St Dennis digi I've used is Frosty. He's just so adorable.

What you need...

Digi stamp: Frosty - Rick St. Dennis

Patterned paper: DIY Christmas Card Foundations - Simple Stories

Label/scallop border: DIY Christmas Card Layers - Simple Stories

Card stock: olive green, white

Promarkers: Cool Grey 4, Heatwave, Herb Garden, Ice Grey 2, Pumpkin, Warm Grey 5

Gems: clear

Adhesives

What you do...

Print out the image, colour and cut out.

Trim the striped card foundation to fit an A6 blank, with a narrow border. 

Add the red striped scallop border along the bottom edge of the card foundation.

Die cut a large circle in olive green card, attach Frosty to the left side. 

Stick the circle to the right of the blank, so it overlaps the edge and trim the excess.

Add the sentiment tag to the top and finish with a few gems.

I think the toned down reds and greens really suit the image. Isn't he cute? 

For some great inspiration, stop by Incy Wincy and have a look at what gorgeous designs the DT has created. 

Why not treat yourself to a digi from Rick St. Dennis and enter this week's challenge? We would love to see your designs!

Well me dears! I'll sign off for now. I'll be back soon though, as I made a few Christmas cards the other day (wonders will never cease....I found time).

Thanks for popping in! xx

Santa - Kenny K/Incy Wincy

Hello everybody!

Hope you are all well :o)

We have a fantastic challenge for you this week over at Incy Wincy. 'Inspired by a Song, Book or Movie'. How cool is that?  

I was a bit nervous, it was my turn to write the challenge post and my first as a Design Team member for Incy Wincy. Everything seemed to post okay - phew!

We have not one, but two fantastic sponsors this week...

Kenny K - The winner will receive 3 digis!

Iva Nova Chest - A goodie package will be mailed to the winner!

I chose the Santa image by Kenny K as I was inspired by the song 'Santa Claus is coming to town'. Here is my card...

Isn't he a fantastic Santa? So 50's/60's retro, I love it :o)

What you need...

Digi stamp: Santa - Kenny K

Patterned papers: Mint Twist 6.5"x6.5" Paper Pad - Kaisercraft; 'Tis the Season 6"x6" Paper Pad- Echo Park

Card stock: white

Promarkers

Twine: Beetle Black Doodle Twine - Doodlebug

Adhesives

What you do...

Print, colour and cut out the Santa.

Cover the bottom of a white top fold A6 blank with a 4cm deep piece of  the music paper from the 'Tis the Season pad. 

Add a green scallop border from the Mint Twist pad in line with the top edge of the paper strip.

Wrap twine around the blank at the top of the scallop border, tie at the left.

Mount Santa to the right of the blank so his feet overlap the scallops.

Print a sentiment, trim into a banner, mount onto a scrap of music paper and fix to the top left corner.

Ta dah! You now have a very festive card indeed!

Pop on over to the Incy Wincy Designs Challenge and have a look at what my talented teamies have come up with. You will find lots of inspiration so why not give it a go?

I'm going to say ta-ta now...ta-ta! I'll be back soon though. Thanks for stopping by xxxx

Cosmic Colours Challenge #6 Winner & Top 3

Good morning peeps!

I hope you all had a frighteningly good Halloween. I'm so sorry I'm a bit late with this, it's been manic here since Friday! Thankfully things have calmed down and I can get back to normal (if normal is a word for me). 

Thank you for all your fantastic entries this month. As usual, it was SO hard to pick the winner and top 3. So without further ado the Cosmic Colours Challenge #6 winner is....

#19 Susan!

Susan

Congrats to Susan. I think this card is brilliant. Contact me Susan with your postal address and I'll get your goodies sent to you :o)

The Top 3 are...

#1 Beth

Beth

#7 Kitty

Kitty

# 14 Judy

Judy

Well done all! Don't forget to pop into the Challenge Badges page and grab your badges to put on your blogs.

Before I go, I thought I would share a couple of pics of my Halloween costume. I dressed up on Friday night (took me hours). Then yesterday we went to fireworks party. My hubby was there helping set it all up and rang me at 3pm to tell me it was a Halloween/firework party and to be ready for 5pm so I had to do it all again. Men!

(WARNING: really freaky!)

Funny, my lips look red, but they were actually black. These next ones are seriously creepy! Ooer!

Actually, this is just a normal look for me. Bwah ha ha har!

That's me for now, thanks for stopping by and I hope I haven't given you nightmares.

Cosmic Colours Challenge #7

Hello peeps!

It's time for a new Cosmic Colours Challenge...#7!

I've gone for a cosy Christmas palette this month.

Holiday Sparkle Design Seeds®

Here is what I've done using the colours...

The browns have come out a little more pink in the photo than what they really are, but hey ho!

I used one of my favourite Christmas stamp sets - Christmas Reindeer (CL540) by Hero Arts. I coloured the little cuties in with Promarkers, the snow is some ready embossed snowflake card I found at a local craft shop and I added some snowflake stickers to the sky. I finished it off with black pearls for the noses and a few gems on some of the snowflakes.

Of course, you are not committed to making a Christmas card, any occasion will do!

The creator of the winning card will receive some craft goodies and they can grab a Challenge Winner 'brag badge' to proudly display on their blog.

Three runner up cards will be chosen and they can grab the Challenge Top 3! 'brag badge' to proudly display on their blog.

There is also a 'play along' badge that you can grab if you wish. The codes can be found in the 'Cosmic Colours Challenge Badges' page.

The challenge will run until 30th November 2014 - 23:55 (GMT)

I can't wait to see what you come up with. I'll be back later with the winners from challenge #6! xx

An InLinkz Link-up

Mr Snowman - Crafts Beautiful November 2014

Hello peepsicles!

Oooooh! This is a late one for me. I've not long finished a HUGE commission for PaperCrafter (and thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it). 

Anyhoo, I would like to share with you the second card I did for the shaped cards project in the current issue of Crafts Beautiful. In an earlier post I showed you the robin shaped card made by using a template and the paper piecing technique.

This one is a bit different, I decided to illustrate a cute snowman and fussy cut him to create the shaped card.

Here is the lovely little fella...

Isn't he adorable? You can copy the image from the pattern pages of the November issue or you can click here to take you to the Crafts Beautiful website and download it for free.

I made a tiny little tent fold card that is attached to the back of him so that he can stand up, but you can't see it from the front. Cool eh?

The handle for the banner is a cocktail stick wrapped with red and white striped washi tape.

I had such fun illustrating and colouring this one and I think he will always have a special place in my heart - I know, soppy or what?

Don't forget that this month's issue of Crafts Beautiful is overflowing with gorgeous makes, ideas and inspiration, as is the website. Pop on over an have a peep!

Okay, so I'm off to bed now for a bit of a read. Thanks for popping by. TTFN xx

Getting Ready For Christmas - The Paper Shelter/Incy Wincy

Mornin' me lovelies!

We have another fantastic challenge for you this week over at Incy Wincy. The challenge is buttons & bling and our fantastic sponsor is The Paper Shelter. The winner will get a $20 gift certificate!

Here is my card for the DT, I used 'Getting Ready For Christmas'...

What you need...

Digi stamp: Getting Ready For Christmas - The Paper Shelter

Card stock: white

Promarkers: Bright Green, Ice Grey 1, Lime Green, Molten Red, Poppy, Praline, Sandstone

Holly: felt

Buttons: red

Gems: black, red

Glitter glue: Icicle - Stickles

Rub-on: Christmas themed, black

Adhesives

What you do...

Download and print the image to your desired size.

Colour in and cut out leaving a 2-3mm border around the image.

Attach to a white 8.5cm x 17cm top fold blank with foam pads.

Add black gems to the trouser buttons and jacket buttons.

Add three red gems to the holly sprig.

Cover the fir trim on the trousers, jacket and hat with Icicle glitter glue.

Glue felt holly at each end of the washing line and add a red button.

Add the sentiment underneath.

Ta-da! There you have it. Sadly the photo shows the buttons but not the bling - boooo! It is there though, I assure you :o)

So, are you going to enter this week's challenge? Head on over to Incy Wincy and check out the fantastic makes that my lovely teamies have come up with. Inspiration all in one place!

Well, that is me for now. Got to get on with some more commissions :oD

Thanks for calling in and see you soon xx

Round Robin - Crafts Beautiful Nov 2014

Hi folks! How are you?

Today I'd like to share with you another card that I did for Crafts Beautiful as part of a two part set featuring shaped cards. This one is a simple paper piecing card in the shape of a lovely plump round robin :o)

Here is the cute little fella...

The good thing about this little chap is, that you can adapt him for any occasion by making him in lovely bright card or papers and have some flowers or leaf springs instead of the holly.

He can be found along with instructions and templates in the current November 2014 issue of Crafts Beautiful. Alternatively, you can go here, to the Crafts Beautiful website where you can download the templates. Don't forget there are lots of ideas, projects, templates, patterns and free papers to download.

Thanks for stopping by and I'll be back soon with the other shaped card in this set using a different technique. TTFN xx

Cemetarie & Bunny - Lacy Sunshine/Incy Wincy

Good afternoon peeps!

Well we have another great challenge for you over at Incy Wincy Designs, this week being a sketch challenge; believe me when I say I found this one really difficult. 

I'm a CAS person so I would not normally do a layout such as this one. Then again, it is a challenge isn't it? We all have to step out of our comfort zone sometimes :o)

This weeks sponsor is the fab Lacy Sunshine Stamps and the lucky winner will get a prize of  3 digis!

Here is the sketch designed by the lovely Karen...

...and how I tackled it...

Isn't she adorable? The image is called Cemetarie & Bunny and she can be found here.

I decided to make her into a more 'girly' Halloween card, I got my inspiration for the colours from the fab Frankie & Friends Collection by Simple Stories. I kept her colouring to lilacs, aqua and greys with that little pop of burnt orange for the bunny eyes and patch. I loved colouring her in :o)

Here is a list of the items you need...

Card stock: black, white

Digi stamp: Cemetarie & Bunny (Lady Heather's Curiosities) - Lacy Sunshine

Patterned papers: Frankie & Friends 12" x 12" Collection Pack - Simple Stories

Promarkers: Amethyst, Burnt Orange, Ginger, Ice Grey 1,2,3,4 & 5, Lilac, Lime Twist, Orchid, Pastel Beige, Pastel Green

Adhesives

The Pastel Green Promarker is more of a subtle aqua than green, but it was perfect for this image. 

I used a white 'happy' rub-on and a small Halloween die-cut from my stash for the sentiment. 

The black roses were made by hand-cutting a rough circle and then cutting it into a spiral. Next scrunch it and then roll it up and add a spot of glue to the base to secure. Simple!

Why not head on over to Incy Wincy and check out what my talented teamies have done and have a go at the challenge? 

That's me for the moment, thanks for popping by :o) xxx

Winter Wishes - Cricut Explore - Crafts Beautiful Nov 2014

Hello my lovely peeps!

How are you today? It's a lovely warm autumn day here in Norfolk ;o)

Today I would like to show you a peek of the card I did for the Masterclass project in the November issue of Crafts Beautiful.

A while ago I suggested to Sarah, the Editor that a project featuring a card made using an electronic die-cutting machine would be really cool and that I was lucky enough to own the fabulous Cricut Explore®. 

She thought it was a great idea and I came up with this little cutie...

Isn't he just adorable?

I had such fun making this. 

If you have a lot of Christmas cards to make, then the Explore® is perfect as you can cut out multiple images in one sitting.

Christmas cards are my favourite type of card to make, I wish I had more time to make some for myself  :o( I love to do individual cards each year, so that everyone gets a unique one-off card. I might have to do multiples of one design this year, so maybe I will have to gear up the Explore® and have a little production line going! 

Anyhoo, for my write up on the Cricut Explore® including the instructions on how to make this little card, hints, tips and ideas, you'll need to get your mitts on the current issue (November 2014) which out now.

Of course the magazine comes with its usual great free gift and is jam packed with other gorgeous projects, designs, articles, what's trending and so on; plus there is a fabulous gift from Kaisercraft when you subscribe.

Well, I'm going to head off for now. Enjoy the rest of your weekend and thanks for dropping by xx

Pop Flowers

Hello my lovelies!

How are you today? I'm feeling much better, the yukky cold is on its way out - I think drinking plenty of fresh lemon/honey in hot water with a couple of paracetamol helped. 

So, what I got for you this time? Well, I was inspired by a card I found on the Internet and decided to create my version of it as a birthday card for my sister, Yvonne. 

It's very clean, simple and fresh.

What you need...

Stamps: Birthday Sampler, Perky Plants - Paper Smooches

Dies: Clouds - Paper Smooches

Ink pad: Tea Leaves - VersaMagic, Onyx Black - Versafine

Card stock: aqua (light & mid shades), bright pink, lime, turquoise (dark)

Card blank: white 14.5cm square

Pearls: white

Adhesives

What you do...

Hand cut a circle from lime card approximately 2.5cm diameter, three 2cm circles, one each in light aqua, dark turquoise and bright pink; lastly cut three 1.5cm circles, one each in light aqua, dark turquoise and bright pink.

Use Tea Leaves ink to create three stems with leaves at the bottom right corner.

Assemble three flowers and stick to the top of each stem.

Die cut three clouds in mid aqua card and arrange around the flowers.

Stamp the sentiment in Onyx Black at the lower left and embellish each flower with a pearl.

Ta dah!

Believe it or not, this card seemed to take me ages. I'm terrible at taking my time making sure placement of an element or image is just right. 

I won't commit to sticking anything down until I'm 100% happy - too fussy maybe? No. If you are going to make something unique and special, it's worth taking the time (even though I do get frustrated with myself). It always seems to happen when I need to get the card done quickly - grrr!

If I'm struggling, I find the best way is to walk away from my project and then come back to it later with a 'fresh' eye.

Any hoo, that's me for now. Back to the ol' commissions. Thanks for calling in and I'll see you soon xx