PHOTO OVERLOAD

Hi Everyone

Happy Friday!!!

I hope you have all had a good week and are looking forward to your weekend.

I have made quite a few creations today .. .. but my share is actually a little set of four cards .. .. each one just a little bit different but all basically the same.  You know .. .. the same but different!!  LOL!!!

Here we go with photograph overload .. .. .. ...

To make these I used:

Images:  Hero Arts "LP103" Holiday Birds

Sentiment:  Penny Black "30-006" Christmas Critters

Go Kreate Die: Scalloped Square

Nestabilites:  Classic Square

ProMarkers

Josy Rose:  Nail Heads

Diamond Stickles

Cord from the stash box

The little Holiday Birds are actually a little box set of four small stamps.  They took me a lifetime to colour (NOT) LOL!!!

I am well behind with my blog visiting .. .. sorry folks.  I am two weeks away from my next craft fayre and it is all systems go in the House of Hearts. 

I will try to make amends over the next couple of days but if I don't get to you then please forgive me .. .. it isn't because I don't want to .. .. it is because my time is disappearing far too quickly.  Next year I really am going to make Christmas cards all year round .. .. but don't worry I promise not to post them on my blog.  There will only be me happy to see a Christmas card in February .. .. tee hee!!

Have a good evening everyone and a good weekend too, whatever you are up to.

I think I had better go and make another card now LOL!!!

See you again soon

Love

HERE AT LAST

Phew!!

Wasn't sure whether I was going to get to share or not today .. .. .. busy, busy, busy!!!

Just a quick share from me tonight

This used:

Image:  Penny Black "3880K" Fantasy
Sentiment:  Pink Petticoat
Backing Paper:  Cuddly Buddly
Josy Rose:  Nail Heads
Hobbycraft Punches:  Medium and small Snowflakes
Diamond Stickles
Ribbon from the stash box

Whilst showing you a Penny Black creation don't forget the challenge over at Penny Black at Allsorts where the theme this month is "It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas".  You can find it here.  It would be lovely to see you there showing off "your" Penny Black creations.

So have you had gallons of rain falling around you today?  It has been mega here in my little part of the world.

Off to package an order up .. .. see you again tomorrow.

Love

JUST FOR A CHANGE

Tee hee everyone .. .. just for a change I thought I would share a Christmas card today LOL!!!

I have spent the afternoon with my Mum .. .. I sat putting inserts into my stack of Christmas cards whilst Mum sat playing her DS.   Not bad for 80 is she?  Plus we put the world to rights a bit and had a laugh together.

Once my cards are all packaged up in their cellophane packets with their labels etc Mum always goes through them all looking for the heart.  I told her she was being promoted today to my Quality Control Supervisor .. .. she was well impressed LOL!!!

So here is my little share of the day

This used:

Image:  Forever Friends "Cup of Cocoa"

Sentiment:  Computer Generated

Backing Paper:  Pink Petticoat

Go Kreate Die:  Scalloped Square

Josy Rose:  Nail Heads

ProMarkers

Diamond Stickles

Ribbon and charm from the stash box

I paper pieced some of the image in an attempt to make a massive hole in my scrap paper drawer LOL!!

I do love paper piecing  -  I think it has made that little bear's coat look super snuggly.

You know what it is tonight?  The Apprentice!!! 

Woo hoo!!!  Hubby says he will cook tonight so that I can carry on with my cards .. .. ... double whammy!!

Right better get creating before he changes his mind.

Have a good evening everyone.

Love

A GROWN UP CARD TODAY

Hi Everyone

How's your day been?

Mine has been dull and wet weather wise .. .. .. with just the odd glimpse of sunshine .. .. .. and very windy again.  All of the beautiful leaves are slowly falling from the trees and taking up residence on the lawns and the roads and pavements.

A quick share today of a "grown up" card.  No cutsie creation today.  Don't worry though .. .. I haven't grown up.  I'm never planning on doing that.

So here is my creation

This used:

Image:  Stampendous! "P106" Mother and Child

Josy Rose:  Nail Heads

Distress Ink:  Tea Dye .. .. for stamping and distressing

Ribbon from the stash box

and that is it!!!!!  But with such a gorgeous stamp you don't need much else .. .. in fact I could have got away without the ribbon.

I had a bit more good news today.  My luck must be in at the moment as I won the challenge over at Bee Crafty's Tuesday Challenge today.  A new challenge has just been launched using a fab sketch.  Why not pop over and have a look. 

OK back to my creations .. .. still a few to do before I am happy to give in.

Have a lovely evening.

Love

PENNY BLACK CHALLENGE 126 - LET IT SNOW

Hi Everyone

Well has it thrown it down with rain all day where you are?  It has been proper dull and miserable in my neck of the woods.

Yukky dah!!!!

Today's share is for the Penny Black Saturday Challenge where this week the theme is "Let It Snow".

I was a very lucky girly at the weekend and was randomly selected as the winner of last week's challenge .. .. a lifetime 15% discount voucher from PB Stamps and they have over 3,000 stamps in stock!! 

Crikes .. .. how amazing is that for a Penny Black lover!!!  Thousands of Penny Black stamps and lots that are discontinued now .. .. .. ..  some I have never even seen before but have instantly fell in love with!!!

I have told my lovely hubby I will just order one of everything they have and if I have already got some of them then that's just too bad LOL!!! 

Sadly he didn't say "Yes duck, you go ahead"   .. .. ..  he just gave a little laugh .. .. .. I wonder why?   I thought he loved me!?!?!?!?  LOL!!!

Anyway, here is my challenge entry for this week:

This used:

Image:  Penny Black "3766J" Royal Mail

Sentiment:  Penny Black "3555D" Merry

Sentiment:  25 Dec .. .. sorry I don't know .. .. it was a little acrylic thing lying lost and lonely in the bottom of the Christmas stamp drawer

Backing Papers:  Papermania

Josy Rose:  Nail Heads

Hobbycraft Punch:  Large Snowflake

Diamond Stickles

Cord from the stash box

Now I have also been blessed with an award from two of my lovely blog buddies Vicky and Tracy (listed in the order that I was given the award).  Thank you ladies for thinking of me.  Please pop over and see these ladies blogs .. .. they both do gorgeous work.

So my blog has attitude.  Woo hoo!!!  Well even if it hasn't I have an award with lots of hearts on it LOL!!

Now as my regular visitors know I can never pass on my awards as I love all my bloggy visitors and cannot single any of them out .. .. but if you would like to take the award then please do .. .. .. and also follow this link as if you abide by a few simple rules (which of course I haven't) you should be eligible for a gift certificate for $5.00 to spend on digi images.

Have a good evening everyone. 

It is one of those days when I am going to have to have a super hot bath to warm myself through.

Catch you again tomorrow.

Love

FRIDAY SKETCHERS AND BEE CRAFTY

Hi Everyone

I wondered if I was ever going to get here today.

Hubby and I started our day with a bit of a "clear out" in the garage .. .. never a good thing.

I then worked on some orders I wanted to complete so hubby could take them to work with him tomorrow.  Some aren't needed until the end of the month but it is nice to get them done and delivered.  I told myself I wasn't allowed to make anything else until they were done.

So orders done I decided to try and combine two challenges .. .. The Friday Sketchers (where there was a lovely sketch this week) and Bee Crafty's Card Challenge where the theme this week is to work with pastels.

I was tempted not to do a Christmas Card .. .. but as I need a few hundred of them it seemed silly not to make another LOL!!!

Here is my creation:

(I re-took my photographs as the ones I took late Sunday were a bit dull .. .. ..
this morning the weather isn't that much better but at least the pictures are a bit brighter) 

This used:

Image:  Great Impressions "G289"

Sentiment:  Great Impressions "B154"

Backing Papers:  All Funky Hand CD "Dreams Come True"

Hobbycraft Punch:  Small Snowflake

ProMarkers

Glamour Dust

Josy Rose:  Nail Heads

Here is the sketch for following if you fancy playing along with Friday Sketchers.  It does look a bit complicated to begin with but once you start it is quite simple really.

So the results of X-Factor tonight and a very late dinner.  Need to go and get my veg on!!

Sorting that garage of rubbish made us very behind today .. .. with breakfast happening at a time most people would have been clearing up their dinner pots!!  Shame on us!!

Hopefully then I will get chance for a blog hop and see what you have all been up to.

Love

FUNKY HAND MEETS ELLA BLUE

Hi Everyone

I hope your Saturday has been good.

I have been working on some orders today but so I had something to share I have made a quick and easy one using some of the leftovers that were lying around from my make of yesterday.

Yesterday was the first time I had used my "Ella Blue" papers and whilst using them they reminded me of some of the papers on the Funky Hand CD "Now That's Funky" .. .. .. and a quick investigation confirmed that I am not losing my memory .. .. the dotty paper behind my tree is from this CD .. .. doesn't it match just perfectly with the Ella Blue papers?

I will have to make a card similar to the one I made yesterday .. .. but using the Funky Hand CD and compare.  I know the patterns won't be identical but the colours will be similar and I think they are lovely for Christmas cards in "non-traditional" colours.

Anyway, here is my "left-overs" creation.  It isn't very often that scrap papers don't even make their way into the huge scrap box LOL!!!



This used:  

Backing Papers:  GCD Studios "Ella Blue"

Backing Papers:  Funky hand CD "Now That's Funky"
Image:  Woodware Clear Stamps "JGCL529" Tipsy Tree

Josy Rose:  Nail Heads

Glamour Dust

I drew all around the paper pieced  tree image with a Quickie Glue Pen and then sprinkled on the compulsory Glamour Dust to give it a little sparkle .. .. .. you can't have a Christmas Card without some sparkle can you? LOL!!

Sorry my make is so simple .. .. but I love it anyway. 

Have a lovely evening everyone.

X-Factor for me tonight .. .. but well behind the scheduled time.  Hubby has gone to football and they have a late kick off (only just kicking off now) so a bit more crafty time for me with football on in the background and X-Factor later, later.

Thank you for all your lovely comments on my creation of yesterday.  I felt a bit guilty that so many of you said you would like to own a Cricut.  I bought mine a couple of years ago when a local craft shop reduced everything in their store to half price .. .. .. so my lovely hubby persuaded me that I needed to get one whilst there was such a good offer on.  I pretended I needed persuading .. but I didn't really LOL!!!

I don't have many cartridges for my machine  .. .. the ones that I do have I have managed to pick up either second hand or in sales (a bit like a lot of my stash really).

Love

MUCH EARLIER TODAY!!

Hi Everyone

I'm here again .. .. a little earlier than yesterday.

Today I decided to get my Cricut into action and see if I could create a few cards using a cartridge I bought last year in a sale.  I knew it would come in one day .. .. and today is that day.

Here is my creation:

This was made using:

Papers:  All GCD Studios "Ella Blue"

Sentiment:  Computer Generated

Cricut Cartridges:  George and Basic Shapes  plus  Christmas/Noel

Nestabilities Die:  Deckled Rectangle Large

Josy Rose:  Hot Fix Gems

Diamond Stickles

Distress Ink Pad:  Old Paper for distressing edges

Tiny Snowflake Punch with no name (shame)

I enjoyed using my Cricut and really should use it more.  I was able to cut everything except the sentiment die on the machine and could leave it working whilst I was getting on with other things.  Great for production line creating and I managed six like this fairly quickly.

Have a lovely evening everyone and stay safe if you are going to watch any fireworks.

Catch you again tomorrow.

Love

PHEW .. .. I THOUGHT I WAS NEVER GOING TO GET HERE !!

Hi Everyone

I thought I was never going to get to be posting today .. .. .. that is what comes of trying to be a good daughter and wife. 

I knew what I wanted to make and post today .. and managed to get it half made before I went to spend some time with my Mum and finished it off once I got home. 

At Mum's I sat and put all the inserts into the cards I have been making over the last week or so .. .. and then once I got home I needed to get dinner ready super early as hubby was out tonight.

So hubby is now out and time is mine .. .. though I still have to clear up that messy kitchen .. .. boo hoo!!!

So here is the "day long" make that has been made in bits and bobs all day.  It was inspired by a video over on the Hero Arts Blog here.  You do need to scroll down through the post a bit to find it though .. .. but it is well worth a look.

Sadly I did not have all the right things to replicate what had been done .. so I made up my own version using what I did have.



My version used:

Manuscript stamp:  Elusive "32531" Script Background

Scroll stamp:  Basic Grey "Two Scoops" Swirlie Stamps

Backing Paper:  Pink Petticoat

Cuttlebug snowflake die

Martha Stewart Punch:  Stars

Josy Rose:  Nail Heads

Glamour Dust

Distress Inks:  Wild Honey, Peeled Paint, Old Paper and Tea Dye for Stamping

Elzybells:  White Sugar Candy Pigment Inkpad

Rangers Bridal Embossing Tinsel

Cord from the stash box

Make sure you pop over and watch the video .. .. it is brilliant.

Have a lovely evening everyone .. .. well what is left of it .. .. and I am off to clear up my messy kitchen LOL!!!

Love

FILIGREE TREE

Hi Everyone

Not such a bright and beautiful day here today .. .. in fact it dared to rain on my washing!!!  LOL!!!

A very quick share of one of my creations: 

This used:

Image:  Penny Black "3741K" Filigree Tree

Sentiment:  Computer Generated

Backing Paper:  DCWV Rose Tinted Christmas

Martha Stewart Punch:  Embossed Zig-Zag

Adirondack Lights:  Pink Sherbert

Cosmic Shimmer Embossing Powder:  Black Sparkle

Josy Rose:  Nail Heads

Cord from the stash box

I heat embossed the gorgeous tree image with the Cosmic Shimmer Powder .. .. but unfortunately the camera won't pick up all the lovely sparkle for you :-( 

So it is Wednesday again .. .. The Apprentice is on again yay!!!  I was asked if I have any favourites .. .. well I like (in no particular order) Liz and Jamie .. .. so no doubt I have just given them the kiss of death!!  LOL!!

Have a good evening everyone and thank you for calling by and all the lovely comments you leave me.  See you again tomorrow.

Love

SNOWFLAKES ARE JUST UNASSEMBLED SNOWMEN

Hi Everyone

How strange for it to be getting dark so early .. .. it took me a while to remember yesterday that we had actually put the clocks back and we weren't due a downpour of rain.

Quite a windy day here today and I have had to re-peg my washing on the line a couple of times!!!

I am still in Christmas card mode and here is today's share

 

This used:

Image:  Funstamps "FM131" Scribble Snowman

Sentiment:  Penny Black "3535F" Snowflakes

Backing Paper:  Papermania

Small snowflakes:  Cuttlebug Die

Snowflake flower:  Cuttlebug Dies, HobbyCraft Punch

Josy Rose:  Gems

Ribbon from the stash box [but it has nearly all gone :-(   ]

Glamour Dust

Acetate

Crafty Notions:  Double Sided Adhesive Sheet

ProMarkers

Most of what I have done here is pretty straightforward but I will explain how I made my snowflake flower.

The first layer was made from acetate to which I applied a small piece of the double sided adhesive sheet.  I then ran the acetate, with the backing attached, through the cuttlebug to cut out a large acetate snowflake that now had adhesive stuck to the back.  (That made a real cool noise going through the cuttlebug!!!).

Once cut I removed the backing from the snowflake and then dipped the snowflake in glamour dust .. .. .. resulting in one very sparkly snowflake!!

I then just layered up the flower with another snowflake that had been cut using a medium sized Hobbycraft punch with inked edges and finished with a promarker coloured small cuttlebug snowflake to which I had glued the little gems.

I quite like the finished look.

So that is me for today.  Back to the Christmas cards .. .. .. if I could make 150 today I would still need to make more tomorrow!!!  LOL!!

Have a good evening everyone. 

Love

FUNKY HAND AND PENNY BLACK CHALLENGES FOR NOVEMBER

Hi Everyone

I hope everyone is well.

Here I am as promised .. .. bright and early to launch two new challenges for November.

The first is the Funky Hand Challenge (Get Funky!) where the challenge has been set by my lovely DT team mate Loopylou!!  This month the challenge is asking for you to create a label .. .. the only rule being that you need to include at least one Funky Hand paper or digi image on your creation.

Please link your label post to the challenge blog here and tell us which Funky Hand product you used on your creation.  You can also see all the other inspiration pieces worked on by my lovely DT mates.  There is a prize of a £20 voucher to spend in the Funky Store and lots to spend it on so well worth entering.

Thanks for a lovely theme Lou  .. .. I really enjoyed making my label.  Not something I do very often.

Here is what I produced as my inspiration piece

This used:

Funky Hand Download "Salt and Pepper"

Funky Hand "Alpha-Bits" for the "Love" letters

Woodware Punches:  Circles

Paper Crimper

Nestabilities:  Classic Scalloped Circles Large (for cutting the flower layers)

Sizzix Die:   "654680" Scallop Tag

Leone Em Pty Punch:  "CP30" Ash Branch

Brad and ribbon from the stash box

So that is the first challenge launch. 

Now on to the next which is the Penny Black at Allsorts Challenge  for November where as usual there are lots of lovely prizes on offer.

The theme here this month is "It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas". 

You can see the challenge here   .. .. .. and also all the beautiful inspiration provided by my lovely DT Teamies.  You can make anything for this challenge .. .. it doesn't have to be a card .. .. but your work does have to have a Penny Black product as the main feature on your project.

Here is my inspiration piece:

This used: 

Image:  Penny Black Slapstick "40-005" Here Comes Christmas

Sentiment:  Penny Black "3502F" A Wish .. ..

Sentiments stamped onto vellum:  Penny Black "30-017" Holly Day Critters

Backing Paper:  Bearly Mine "Christmas Delight"

Martha Stewart Punch:  Valentine Lace

Cuttlebug Die:  Large Snowflake

Hobbycraft Punch:  Small Snowflake

Distress Ink:  Faded Jeans

Glamour Dust

Cosmic Shimmer Powder

Diamond Stickles

White Gel Pen

Brads and Button from the stash box

There is a little more to this creation than there actually looks on the photographs.  You may not be able to see very clearly but I have actually stamped little words onto the vellum with a clear versamark ink pad and bushed over the words with cosmic shimmer powder.  It really makes the vellum look special .. .. but is hard to see in the photographs.

To create the background of the image I stamped my picture once and shaded the sky using the distress ink pad and a blending sponge. 

I then stamped my image again and coloured and cut out the cute little hedgehogs and stuck these onto the first distressed picture.

I coloured the falling snowflakes (several times) with a white gel pen. 

I really love the finished look and this could be my favourite Christmas card make so far this year.

So out with your stash everyone and I look forward to seeing what you all create with your goodies.

Have a great Monday.

Love

CHRISTMAS IS SPECIAL

Hi Everyone

I hope you have all had a wonderful (extra long) Sunday!!

I can't decide what I have done with my extra hour .. .. .. certainly not much crafting .. .. .. but then not every day can be perfect can it LOL!!

Quite a bit of shopping done though .. .. including some of the dreaded Christmas presents.  I am determined to be ready super early this year.

Today's creation is for a challenge I have never taken part in before.  The Friday Sketchers. 

The sketch this week was lovely to work with and here is what I created:

This used:

Image:  Buzzcraft "Fairy Doodles" No. 430

Backing Papers:  Pink Petticoat

Sentiment:  Computer Generated

Image background:  Adirondack Lights "Cloudy Blue and Pink Sherbert"

Josy Rose:  Nail Heads

Hobbycraft Punch:  Small Snowflake

Diamond Stickles

Glamour Dust

ProMarkers

So that is me for today.

Tomorrow I am back with the start of a new month .. .. which means the launch of a new Penny Black at Allsorts Challenge and a new Funky Hand Challenge.  Woo hoo!!!

See you bright and early tomorrow.

X-Factor results tonight!!  Not such a good show last night I didn't think and Wagner has to go for me (if only to stop everyone saying the poor chaps name wrong .. .. how many times does he have to correct them!!)..

Love

PENNY BLACK SATURDAY - CHALLENGE 125

Hi Everyone

Up and at it nice and early this morning and one of my first jobs on a Saturday morning is to have a look at the Penny Black Saturday Challenge .. .. .. any excuse to drool over Penny Black images LOL!!! 

The theme this week is to use triangles or zig-zags on your project -  so for good measure I decided to use both.

Inspired by the DT work I thought I would jump straight into the challenge and here is my creation

This used:

Image:  Penny Black "4092K" A Thorny Affair

Sentiment:  Pink Petticoat

Backing Papers:  Cuddly Buddly "A Patchwork of Papers - Red"

Martha Stewart Punch:  Embossed Zig-Zag

ProMarkers

Glossy Accents

Woodware:  Mini Bells

Ribbon from the stash box

Diamond Stickles

So my share of the day is done nice and early today.

A beautiful sunny day here so the washing machine is going on overdrive and hubby is off to watch his football team .. .. they are doing quite well this season so hopefully he is going to see a good game.

I have sat and watched Anice from Funky Hand live on the TV (managed to see some of my creations) and now I really must get showered and dressed before the day is gone and I have spent it all in my PJ's!!!!  Shock horror!!

Have a lovely day everyone.

Love

GOOD NEWS

Hi Everyone

I hope everyone is well and ready for the weekend .. .. an extra hour to be gained into the bargain!!  What more could we ask for?

How will you spend yours?  An extra hour in bed .. .. and extra hour crafting?

I always tell myself I am going to spend it in bed .. .. but I never do.  I wake up all excited and have to get up and play with my craft goodies LOL!!!

But before we get the treat of our extra hour we are going to have the pleasure of Anice from Funky Hand gracing our TV screens.  She is going to be on the Create and Craft TV channel (Sky 671, Freeview 36 & Freesat 813) on Saturday 30th October at 11am, and then repeated a couple of times over the weekend.

Anice is demonstrating her two most recent CD ROMS from the Papercraft Factory range .. .. Dreams Come True and Colour Me Happy.. but the big deal is that Create and Craft are going to have an AMAZING price offer if you buy both CD ROMS together. 

The DT were given the challenge of making some Christmas themed cards from the CD's .. .. which you might think is strange considering the CDs are not necessarily seen as containing Christmas papers.  But always up for a challenge we managed some lovely creations between us.

Below are a couple that I made and you never know you might be able to spot them on the TV tomorrow .. .. only "might" though because the DT as a whole created so many samples I am sure Anice won't get chance to show them all. So just in case you don't see them .. .. I will share them here.

Both of these creations were made using the Colour Me Happy CD (and my trusty sewing machine) .. .. though I have pinched the Alpha-Bits from a Funky download and the Happy Christmas sentiment too.

Don't worry though .. .. the downloads are going to be going on sale over the weekend over on the website.. .. a giant 25% off!!  Woo hoo!!  You can see them all here.

So I had a lovely night with my Sis last night and I have now had my "short back and sides" haircut.  Some might call it a "summer cut"  LOL!!! 

I love it when I have had my hair cut .. .. it makes me feel so much more human .. .. which can only be a good thing .. .. and saves me loads of time in getting ready in a morning!!

Have a happy Friday everyone. 

Love