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A very warm welcome to my teeny, tiny part of the huge world of blogging. This is where I share my passion for making hand made greeting cards. So - why "Always with a Heart"? Well this is for two reasons. Firstly, it is because every card I produce carries a heart on it somewhere. This can be big and bold or small and almost hidden - the fun sometimes is just trying to find it! Secondly it is because I put my heart into everything I produce. I hope that any visitors enjoy seeing what I post. If you drop by then please leave me a comment so that I know you called. It would be nice to know that you have found my heart in what I do.

Sunday 30 November 2014

SUNDAY SNIPPETS FOR RUDOLPH DAY

Hi Everyone

Gosh what a super fast weekend .. .. someone has stolen my hours "big time" !!

Here by the skin of my teeth to share a couple of cards in Pixie's Snippets Playground and Sandra's Rudolph Day Challenge.   I was worried I was going to miss the deadline for Rudolph Day .. .. but there are still a few minutes left.  Phew!!!  

So here are my makes:




As always on a Sunday I am lazy and do not list my ingredients but feel free to ask away if there is anything you wish to know.

Must fly .. .. trying to do too many things at once and if I am not careful one of those spinning plates will drop  LOL!!

Enjoy what is left of the weekend.

I wonder who is for the chop in X-Factor tonight?

Catch you again soon.

Love

Saturday 29 November 2014

HAND MAILED

Hi Everyone

I hope you are having a lovely weekend.

The London Kids are well excited.  They picked their keys up from the estate agent today and from there were going to stock up on decorating supplies and begin the "makeover".  They have some good friends helping them so the phrase "many hands make light work" will hopefully prove true.  

They sent me a message to say they had got the keys in their hands and surprise, surprise, the estate agent had also given them a bottle to use for celebration purposes! I thought that was a lovely touch.  That has certainly never happened to us and we have moved house a few times!!

Christmas is the order of the weekend here, so here is a little make which uses another pre-owned Ebay purchase that dropped through my letter box yesterday:




This used:

Image:  Penny Black "4014K" Hand-mailed
Sentiment:  Computer generated using fonts "Georgia" and "Hobson"
Backing Papers:  First Edition "Vintage Noel"
Martha Stewart Punch:  Traditional Scallop
Josy Rose:  Nail Heads
X-Cut:  Corner Rounding Punch
ProMarkers and chalk
Diamond Stickles
Glamour Dust
Snowflakes from the snowflake box
Ribbon, holly berries, cord and eyelet from my crafty stash box

My creation is also for entering into the Penny Black Saturday Challenge where the theme this month is "All Wrapped Up" .. .. in terms of coats, hats, scarves, gloves etc. 

So that is my share for today (still not sure that hedgehog is going to be able to reach and get that special envelope into the post though LOL!!).

Lots of Christmas decorations appearing around and about us here .. .. some people are certainly far more organised in that department than I am that's for sure.  

Hopefully catch you again soon.

Love

Wednesday 26 November 2014

ARCTIC FUN

Hi everyone

I hope that all is well with you all.

Just popping in with a Christmas card whilst having an eye on The Apprentice .. .. oh I do enjoy that programme!




This used:

Image and Sentiment:  Just part of the Digistamp Boutique "Arctic Fun Set"
Backing Papers:  Lili of the Valley "Classic Christmas Paper Pad"
X-Cut Palm Punch:  Snowflake and Corner Rounder
Josy Rose:  Nail Heads
Glamour Dust
Diamond Stickles
Tumbled Glass Distress Ink
ProMarkers

I am also going to enter my little make into the Digistamp Boutique Challenge for November.

Catch you again soon.

Just about to find out who is being fired!!!  Ooooo...

Love

Sunday 23 November 2014

SUNDAY SNIPPETS

Hi Everyone

I hope you have had a lovely weekend.

The weather has been pretty grotty in my neck of the woods for most of the time and now we have a lovely frost forming .. .. eeekk!!!

Good news from the London Kids!  They have signed their lives away and will be getting the keys to their new home next week .. .. woo hoo!!  We are so excited for them.  Nothing like your own home where you can paint the walls any colour you want and hang anything on the walls without having to get permission from a landlord first!

That means it will soon be time for the sparkly new stamp I have been saving especially for them to come out of safe keeping, and be tickled with some ink!  

I have finally found time to tidy away all the equipment etc I took to the wedding fayre at the beginning of the month which makes me feel so much better. I am far more creative when everything around me is tidy.   All samples are now made, most proofs out for signing off  by "happy couples" and a feeling is upon me that life "may" just calm down a little now.  (Tee hee .. .. those are probably famous last words!).

This means I can now have a bit of time on some much needed Christmas makes .. .. and these two are for taking over to share in Pixie's Snippets Playground.

So here we go:





As always I allow myself to be lazy on a Sunday and don't list my ingredients but if there is anything you would like to know then please ask and I will do my best to answer.

I might be being lazy on the card ingredient front .. .. but sadly I now need to iron .. .. what ever happened to crimplene that didn't need ironing LOL!!

Catch you again soon and enjoy what is left of today..

Love

Thursday 20 November 2014

TIMES FLIES WHEN YOU ARE HAVING FUN !

Hi Everyone

I hope you are having a good week .. .. mine is yet again flying by and has been taken up with requests for yet more wedding invitation samples from interested couples.

Sadly it has even been necessary to turn some couples away as some months for next year are already full to bursting :-(  

Nice to know I am going to be busy, but there is only so much work you can take on.

So as I haven't had time to make anything to share with you I thought you might like to see my favourite of the makes I did for this month's Quick Cards Made Easy magazine.

I did a commission called "wreath cards" .. .. and my favourite of the collection was this one (well I think it was my favourite .. .. I enjoyed making them all:


or was it this one?

I can't decide so will show you both LOL!!


I am not quite ready to give in for today yet, my bridal creativeness is still flowing, so I will love you and leave you and go and play with my ribbons and sparkly diamante! 

But after promising to make more of an appearance this week I thought I had better show you something before I land myself in trouble.

Enjoy what is left of the evening.

Catch you soon.

Love

Tuesday 18 November 2014

TEENY, TINY TUESDAY!

Hi Everyone

I hope everyone has shared the lovely weather that we were blessed with here today!

Definitely a bit nippy but nice and dry with a beautiful sky .. .. and even a little glimpse of sunshine!  

Teeny, tiny card time again (and for anyone new to my creations my teeny, tiny cards measure a whole 3.5 x 3.5 inches).



This used:

Sentiment:  Pink Petticoat "Christmas Scriptalicious Sentiments"
Backing Papers:  Kaisercraft "Yuletide"
X-Cut Punch:  Christmas Tree (an old one but sometimes still available)
My Trusty Sewing Machine
Glitter Paper
Ribbon from my Crafty Stash Box
We R Memory Keepers Envelope Board for the matching envelope

and that is it.

Now round to the lovely comments and emails following my Sunday Snippets post and cards shared in the post below:

The first card was actually made by using Gold Shine Sparkle Medium and a stencil (Imagination Crafts Bauble Branch) on a base of navy blue card .. .. .. leaving it to dry and then cutting it out by hand.  The sentiment was part of the same set I used today from Pink Petticoat.  I hope that helps.

I had to laugh at everyone guessing what they might receive from Santa if they received £5 gifts that started with the initial of their first name.  

For mine I have so far guessed at Jelly Tots, Jammie Dodgers, Jif Lemon Juice, Jelly Beans, Jaffa Cakes, Jam, Jelly, Jewellery or a Jig-Saw.  It is a bit scary to think it won't be that long until I know!!!  Eeeekk!!!

Lots of birthday cards needed at this end .. .. as well as lots of Christmas cards and wedding work to tackle.  Thank goodness it is only Tuesday!

Have a lovely evening everyone.

Love

Sunday 16 November 2014

YAY!! SUNDAY SNIPPETS

Hi Everyone

I hope you are all well and have had a lovely weekend .. .. if you aren't well then I hope you improve very soon.

There seem to be lots of germs around at the moment - but they needn't bother knocking on my door! No time to spend any time in their company that's for sure LOL!!

Lots of things got crossed of the "urgent" list last week and a good clear up this morning found a few little bits that were just perfect for adding to cards for taking over to Pixie's Snippets Playground. I love it when things that have been sitting in a little box waiting to be used finally disappear.

So here we go:





As always on a Sunday I am lazy and don't list my ingredients but if there is anything you need to know please ask and I will do my best to answer.

I am hopeful of making a bit more of an appearance on my blog too now the initial manic rush following the wedding fayre is calming down a little.  Still more samples to be made for "happy couples" but I feel I am starting to win.  (Hope I am not tempting fate there LOL!!).

Mr Heart and I actually started the Christmas shopping yesterday - one whole hour dedicated to it and plenty done.  We don't go overboard with presents but instead for lots of folk we just do "fun" presents. So lots of £1 presents to get and others where you are allowed to spend £5 but every present for that person has to begin with the initial of that person's name.

It certainly makes Christmas shopping great fun, and much less expensive.  No-one can expect anything "out of this world" - but lots more thought goes into them and it is surprising what you can find if you look carefully!!  LOL!!

Enjoy what is left of Sunday everyone and I will hopefully catch you again soon.

Love

Thursday 6 November 2014

A LITTLE BIT OF CHRISTMAS

Hi Everyone

Happy Thursday!!!

What a fast week .. .. Friday tomorrow ALREADY!!!

I have managed to make an appearance tonight with a little bit of Christmas.  This card has only taken four days to make!!  Every time I have picked it up to work on something else became more urgent and meant it was put to one side.  

But finally it is finished and uses a pre-loved Penny Black stamp that I gained from E-Bay last week. Can't believe I was the only bidder!  Poor un-wanted little stamp :-(  It will be loved and cared for by me though. 




This used:

Image:  Penny Black "1508K" Caroling Hedgehogs
Sentiment:  Penny Black "30-140" Christmas Cheer Transparent Set
Backing Papers:  First Edition Paper "Vintage Noel"
Tattered Lace Die:  "D437" Christmas Florals Holly
Nestabilities:  Small Deckled Mega Rectangles
Josy Rose:  Nail Heads
Diamond Stickles
ProMarkers
Ribbon from My Crafty Stash Box

and there we go!  At least whilst I was at it I coloured in three images all th same so the next two cards should be a bit quicker than four days .. .. .. hopefully LOL!!!

Right, I am going to be a good girl and put an insert inside and package it up  .. .. .. straight away!!

Enjoy your evening and I will hopefully catch you again soon.

Love

Tuesday 4 November 2014

TEENY, TINY TUESDAY

Hi Everyone

Happy Tuesday.  I hope everyone is having a good day.  Certainly a cold start!  Mr Heart had to scrape his car down before he could leave for work this morning!

At this rate I am going to become known as the teeny, tiny Tuesday blog!!  Thankfully  I had this little number ready and waiting. Talk about life in the fast lane!!!

Will give you an up-date later but for now here is my teeny, tiny 3.5 x 3.5 inch creation for this week.



This used:

Backing Papers:  Pink Petticoat "Isabelline"  love this download so much!
My Favorite Things Die-namics:  Blueprints 14
Distress Inks:  Squeezed Lemonade and Wild Honey
X-Cut Punch:  Small Flower
Sizzix Die:  "658226" Botanical Flourish
Dreamweaver Embossing Paste
That Special Touch Mica Mask - Distressed Dots
My Trusty Sewing Machine
Clear Embossing Powder
Josy Rose:  Nail Heads
Twine from My Crafty Stash Box
and of course the We R Memory Keepers Envelope Board

and that is my creative share for today.

So .. .. now to The House of Hearts up-date.

As you know we did a wedding fayre on Sunday.  Gosh it was busy .. .. and there was lots of interest and lots of lovely couples to meet.

I spent all the day before doing some new samples and packing away in readiness, thinking that all the mess everywhere didn't matter.  I could clear it all up Monday .. .. as normally the day after a fayre is the calm after the storm and the clear up campaign day for hiding away all the lights, easels, stands, boxes etc.

But not this time!

Enquiries started coming in Sunday night and yesterday .. .. so it has been a case of hitting the ground running.

But the weirdest thing is that two of the invitations I made on Saturday were ultra popular.  Normally I make a full range of items and display them as a collection .. .. but I only had chance to make a day and evening invitation for this collection and was tempted to leave them at home. I didn't, but because I was disappointed at there only being two items in the collection I put them towards the back of the display .. .. but they were the invitations everyone fell in love with and got the most attention!!  How weird! I just couldn't believe how many people loved them.  I will definitely be completing the range more fully ready for the next fayre in February.

We only have an hour to set up which sounds ages .. .. but really it isn't.

No time for a quick coffee before folks arrived this time .. .. and no time for photographs!  Busy, busy, busy all day long.  Clearly all your good wishes for a successful fayre worked their magic! Thank you everyone you are very kind.

So that is me!  Time now to slurp some soup and then make more samples for an interested couple and then I really do have to do that clear up campaign because a new bride has made an appointment for tomorrow.  Perhaps that is why I didn't store my table plans away - because they all need to come out again for tomorrow!  Shame I carried them up-stairs really LOL!!

Thank goodness I had this post ready and just needing the up-date adding.

Enjoy the rest of the day everyone and once again I have to apologise for my lack of blog visiting. Such a shame I have to waste time sleeping!!  LOL!!

One day I will catch up.

Love