RUDOLPH DAYS CHALLENGE

Hi Everyone

Happy Saturday!

I hope your day is going well.

My sister has been with Mum today so I have been having a card making fix!  I have been taking crafty things with me to sit and do whilst with Mum .. .. but it isn't the same as having all your supplies around you to dip in and out of .. .. so today I feel like a kid in a toy shop.

I have quite a few weddings falling around Christmas this year that are going to need quite a lot of work doing for them .. .. so I am trying to make a real effort to get lots of Christmas cards under my belt nice and early.

So apologies to folk who only like to see Christmas makes later in the year .. .. but needs must!

Today I am playing along with the Rudolph Days Challenge which runs from the 25th to the end of each month. 

To take part you only need to enter one project .. .. but the sharp eyed among you will notice I have made two using different sentiments. These are based on a teeny tiny card I made last Christmas using this image. It was very popular with my customers and I made quite a few in the end .. .. so this year I am "up-sizing" and making a larger version.

 This used:

Image and Sentiment:  Digistamp Boutique "Partridge in  Pear Tree"

Backing Papers: Docrafts Forever Friends "Kraft Notes"

ProMarkers

Distress Ink Pad:  Antique Linen

Snowflake Punches

Glossy Accents

Glamour Dust

Ribbon, Gem and Pearls from my Crafty Stash Box

My Trusty Sewing Machine

and that is it.  Another two Christmas cards for my box!  Yay!!

Many thanks for all the good luck wishes regarding my Mum and the wheelchair sketch I shared with you on my previous post.

I was quite surprised how well she accepted me introducing a wheelchair into her home, it can't have been an easy thing for her.  I was expecting her to say "you can take that back from wherever you got it" .. .. but she didn't.  Yay!!  Sadly though it was raining so we never got to have our first outing.  

My sister is with her today and my brother tomorrow, and both are as keen as me to take her out into the fresh air, so hopefully it won't be long before she experiences the great outdoors once again and her world is once again more than the four walls she has been content with for far too long.

Enjoy your weekend everyone.  I hope it includes a little bit of crafty time for you.

WHAT DO YOU CLASS AS A QUICK CARD?

Hi Everyone

Happy Thursday!

I hope you have had a good day .. .. mine has flown by super quickly as usual.

I spent time with Mum again today and on the way home called to borrow a wheelchair from our friends in the hope of getting her to go out and about.  It is taking some persuading but I am hopeful she is going to let me push her into town for her to look around the shops. Prior to being poorly she was someone who always needed her daily fix of "fresh air" .. .. so after what must be 6 weeks or so I am hoping the lure of the sunshine .. ..  and her beloved T K Max store will between them persuade her to venture out.

I am managing a little bit of crafting whilst with Mum and today managed to finish a set of invitations and whilst there a scrummy new set of downloads arrived in my "in-box" from the lovely Sally-Ann of Digistamp Boutique .. .. .. they are always exciting to open .. .. .. especially this one as it held lots of downloads for making super fast cards.  Something I am desperately in need of at the moment as time is a bit short on the crafty front and there are a lot of birthdays to cater for in the House of Hearts come May time. 

So .. .. what do you class as a "quick card"?  

For me it is anything that takes me less than half an hour.  But this one was even faster than that!  It took a whole 15 minutes .. .. with the longest part of that being the thing I dither over the most .. .. my backing papers!  LOL!!

So here it is .. .. my super speedy make:

This used:

Image and sentiment (one of many):   Digistamp Boutique:  "Large Happy Birthday Set - Lilac"

Backing Paper:  Craft Sensations "Chalkboard Love"

My Trusty Sewing Machine

Quickie Glue Pen and Glamour Dust

Gems and Ribbon from my Crafty Stash Box

and that is it!  

If you like this style of design then there are lots of other styles that have just been released here.  Newbies are always discounted for a limited time as they make their grand entrance into the boutique so don't miss out on a bargain.

Now it is time to un-pack the bag I took to Mum's today and re-load it with supplies ready for tomorrow.  

Wish me luck as I also take the wheelchair into the flat tomorrow .. .. and even more luck in persuading Mum to actually be taken out in it!!!  

Enjoy the rest of your evening.

I BELIEVE IN UNICORNS .. .. .. I THOUGHT EVERYONE DID!

Hi Everyone

Happy Monday!

Hope you had a good weekend and enjoyed some sunshine.

We had friends round for dinner Saturday night and then Sunday I seemed to struggle to stay awake .. .. so I didn't!  LOL!!  I spent the day pottering about the place and snoozing .. .. in the hope of it making me hyperactive for this week.

I seem to be off to a good start .. .. and Mum was pleased with our efforts today so that was good!  LOL!!

Anyway, just a quick share today to show you the lovely free image and sentiment that Digistamp Boutique will be sending to everyone who enters their competition during April.  Still a few days left if you wish to enter .. .. all you need to do is use a Digistamp Boutique image on your creation.  Full details can be found here.

So here is my creation:

As well as it being a day for believing in unicorns (who doesn't?!?!?), it is also the last day for buying the current April newbies at a discounted rate and for making the most of the 40% discount on the new baby images.  Offers end tonight (Monday 23rd) at midnight UK BST.

So much to share from the lovely Sally-Ann.  She has been beavering away creating lots of new designs (lots of exciting things on the horizon) .. .. it is always hard to know what to play with first!!

Anyway, must fly.  One of my happy couples have ordered some extra invitations so I need to get card chopping!  Now Mum is improving I need to start catching up with the wedding world too.

Enjoy what is left of your evening.

DESIGNER POST - DIGISTAMP BOUTIQUE

Hi Everyone

Happy Friday!!   

The weekend is in touching distance!!

I hope you have all been enjoying some of this lovely sunshine.  It has been good enough to be summer here .. .. and my ironing basket is getting fuller and fuller!  Eeekk!!

So another week rolls by and here I am with my designer post for Digistamp Boutique.

For this creation I have used two digital downloads.  The background was a release from last month which I hadn't had chance to play with called "Land Background" .. .. coloured using ProMarkers and added to a stepper card base.  

Then all the fabby farmyard characters are part of a brand new sparkly download which has just been added to the boutique called "On The Farm".. .. .. and I haven't even used all the characters here!!  Lots more in the set.  I felt quite cruel leaving some out of the limelight!!  LOL!!

The sentiment was computer generated using a font called "Chauncy"

So that is me for today.  Enjoy your weekend .. .. whatever you are doing.  Let's hope we are going to get some more of this lovely scrummy sunshine!

MID WEEK SNIPPETS

Hi Everyone

I hope you have all had a lovely sunny Wednesday?!?!?

It was glorious here.  Good enough to be summer.  The only down side being I have now made a rather large pile of ironing!! LOL!!!

I have also been clearing up my craft pod and challenged myself to make a card using bits that were lying around my desk .. .. making it perfect for taking over to the Pixie's Snippets Playground where we are encouraged to use up our "leftovers".

So here is what I made.  Even the ribbon was an offcut!!

This used

Image:  Digistamp Boutique "A4 Quick Print colour sheet - Birds" 
Backing Papers:  A mish mash of snippets
Nestabilites:  Classic Circle and Scalloped Circle
Josy Rose: Nail Heads
Ribbon, Twine and Charm
My Trusty Sewing Machine

Plus Sketch Number Six from my Sketch Library .. .. which you can find here ... or on the Sketches tab at the top of my blog.  (Please feel free to use any of my sketches if you fancy having a play with them).

and that is me for today.

It has been another few days that have flown by in the blink of an eye .. .. .. and thankfully Mum is still continuing to improve.  We are getting there slowly.

Enjoy what is left of the evening.

DIGISTAMP BOUTIQUE DT POST

Hi Everyone

Happy Friday!

I hope all is good with you.

A late make for me for my DT post this week .. .. I made my projects this morning before heading off to Mum .. .. just shows how quickly things can be pulled together!

This is what I came up with .. .. a card and matching decorated candle using one of the A4 Quick Prints called Flower Vases

These used:

Image:  Digistamp Boutique "Flower Vases"

Backing Papers: Dovecraft "Sweet Paris"

Tissue Paper

Ribbon

Heart Charm

My Trusty Sewing Machine

Certainly quick makes because it was just a case of printing first onto pale ivory card stock for the card and then onto tissue paper for the candle.  

To print onto the tissue paper I ran a snail glue dispenser around the perimeter of a thin A4 sheet of card and stuck a sheet of tissue paper to this .. .. trimming away any tissue that overhung the card edges before running the sheet through the printer.

Once printed remove the tissue from the card and cut around the image.  Lay the image flat onto the side of a candle and wrap a piece of baking parchment around the candle to hold the image in place .. .. .. scrunching and holding the baking parchment tight with one hand at the back of the candle and melting the tissue paper into the candle with a heat gun.  

You will see the image change colour slightly as it adheres to the candle .. .. but don't hold your heat gun in one spot too long or you will simply melt your candle.

Now of course there are safety concerns with regards burning a candle that has had tissue paper adhered to the outside.  Personally, if I was given a card and matching candle as a gift I wouldn't want to burn the candle anyway .. .. I think they make fabulous gifts and decorative ornaments.

But having said that I did have a wedding couple who wanted decorated candles as their table numbers.  I was rather concerned about the safety side of things .. .. but they said they wouldn't be burning them.

I did burn my test candle though .. .. which is here:

As you can see my candle has burnt right down to the tissue now and is starting to "cave in" and the tissue is starting to crinkle where the heat has been behind the image  .. .. but it has stayed safe so far.  

I put this candle on the table (along with a few others) when Mr Heart and I have our romantic dinners for two.

So if decorating and burning your candles please be aware of the safety element .. .. and do not hold me responsible if you decide to go ahead and burn your candle .. .. and never EVER use a candle to read a book under the bedcovers at midnight!!

Have a great weekend .. .. whatever you are doing!

TIME FOR CAKE

Hi Everyone

Happy Thursday!

I hope you are all doing well.  

Life is still super busy at this end .. .. but happy because Mum is improving day by day.  She is getting much stronger and after us worrying about her food intake she is now eating like a horse!!  (not out of a nose bag .. .. we give her a plate with a knife and fork LOL!!).

Yesterday my Sister in Law kindly spent the day with Mum and sorted her meals out so I could have a day catching up with some of my orders .. .. it seemed like ages since I had been able to spend a whole day in my craft pod.

This is one my creations of the day and I am taking this over to the Penny Black Saturday Challenge where the theme is "Anything Goes" and the option of "Spring Flowers".  My flowers are only part of the backing paper so not sure if that counts or not .. .. but hey .. .. I am just happy to have made a card with one of my Penny Black stamps and to have found time to enter it into the challenge.

This used:

Image:  Penny Black "4320H" Prize Cupcake

Sentiment:  Digistamp Boutique Clear Stamp "Time for Cake"

Backing Papers:  First Edition Paper "Sweet Nothings (loving this pad very much)

Spellbinders Nestabilities Dies:  Classic Circle and Scalloped Circle

ProMarkers

Glamour Dust

My Trusty Sewing Machine

Tiny flat backed pearls from my crafty stash box

and that is me for today!

Catch you again soon.

A4 QUICK PRINT BUTTERFLIES

Hi Everyone

Happy weekend!

I hope you are having a good one .. .. sorry it has been a few days since I last posted but there has been rather a lot happening here. 

My sister and brother are on "Mum Watch" over the weekend so I spent time unpacking and putting away all the craft equipment I took to my Mum's last week .. .. .. and searching for the leads for my printer!!   Of all the crafty goodies I took with me, my printer leads were the last thing I felt I would lose!

Eventually I found them .. .. which was a good job because I wanted to use my printer to have a play with a brand new image sheet that has just been released over at DigiStamp Boutique called A4 Quick Print Colour Sheet - Butterflies.

The idea behind these sheets is that you simply print, cut and use the images and sentiments to create your projects.  Great for those occasions when you don't have the time (or supplies) to create your own layered images.

Love the colours in this collection and how the butterfly images actually look as if they have been stamped onto an inked background.

There are four images and 4 sentiments in the set .. .. and here are three of them.  

I will show you the fourth image another day when I share another couple of ideas I have for the set.

If you are up for a bargain then there is an "early bird" offer on this set (and the other current new April releases)  .. ..  plus 30% off images for men!  Both offers will finish at midnight  on Monday (UK BST).

Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

STAY CALM

Hi Everyone

Happy Wednesday.

I hope you have all had a good day.

Things have been continuing to improve here with Mum .. .. thank you all for your well wishes.  Mum has improved so much it looks like I might be able to at least start sleeping in my own bed again .. . and vacate Mum's settee.

I also have some other fabby news to share.  I am now officially a fully fledged DT member with the lovely Sally-Ann over at Digistamp Boutique .. .. so to celebrate I made this little creation:

This used:

Image:  Digistamp Boutique:  Yoga Alyssa

Sentiment:  Computer Generated using font "Inkston Sans"

Backing Papers:  Tinker N Co "Modern Kate"

ProMarkers

Ribbon from my Stash Box

Still working on very limited supplies here .. .. and missing my sewing machine .. .. but did bring my printer to Mum's this week which has been great to have .. .. other than it not having a proper home.  It has lived on top of the freezer, a blanket box and on the floor so far!!!  LOL!!!

I am also going to enter my creation into the following challenge

The Ribbon Girl Challenge - where the theme is "anything goes"

Take care everyone.  Hopefully catch you all again soon.

OOOPSIE DAISY!

Hi Everyone

I hope your Easter break has been a lovely one.

Mine has flown by in the blink of an eye .. .. and I was just loading my car up ready for returning to Mum's house when I remember that the lovely Sally-Ann has a flash sale on at the moment which gives you a yummy 30% off her fabby digital images.

You will find them all HERE  .. .. including lots of Christmas images for those well organised people who are chipping away at them all year.

So sorry my lovely blog pals .. .. I should have share this sooner  .. .. but I think there is still a little bit of time left to grab a bargain.

I think a card I made a while ago is quite appropriate for this post.

This is just one of the images and sentiments from the "Blooming Lovely Set" .. .. and in the sale it is going to cost you whole 42p !!!  .. .. and this is just one of the images and sentiments!  There are lots of others in the set.  

This is one download I use lots and lots!!  A vase of flowers suits so many occassions.

I took my image into Serif Craft Artist to add the shadow behind it .. .. it looks like it is raised up with dimension pads but really it is totally flat.

Enjoy the rest of your Easter Monday.  

Time for me to go and see if Mum has been behaving herself today!!