FRIEND TO FRIEND

Hi Everyone

I hope you haven't melted in the heat today .. .. it has definitely been super hot in my neck of the woods  and has finished off with thunder and lightening and rain this evening.

Today's share is for taking over to the Little Red Wagon Challenge where the theme is "Friend of Mine"

Flying by the seat of my pants because the closing time is only a few hours away .. .. .. but after so much absence I am trying to catch up with all the challenges I have missed taking part in.

So this is my share for today

Image:  Magenta - Deco Vase "19746  (very old wooden stamp)
Sentiment:  Great Impressions "E411"  (another very old wooden stamp)
Backing Papers:  First Edition Paper .. .. Rose Garden (another old pad I am finishing off)
ProMarkers
Corner Rounding Punch
Hot Fix Nail Heads
Ribbon

Spoiler Alert .. .. hopefully tomorrow is going to be my first Christmas card for 2026.

BANK HOLIDAY SNIPPETS

Hi Everyone

I hope everyone has had a lovely bank holiday weekend.  There has certainly been lots of sunshine in my neck of the woods .. .. not that I am someone who ever wants to sit out in it .. .. I just love that it dries my washing nice and quickly, means I don't need any heating on and I don't need to wear a coat if I do venture out! LOL!!  

I am determined to work my way through my sketches and today it is time for square sketch number two, which I must admit does rank high on my "favourites list" and is one I use quite regularly.

This used:

Image:  Penny Black "3347H" Duckling
Sentiment:  Clearly Besotted Clear Stamp Set "Speaking Out"

Backing Papers:  All Pink Petticoat Snippets 
ProMarkers
Corner Rounding Punch

Ribbon

My Trusty Sewing Machine

and Square Sketch Number Two from my square sketch library which you will find at the top of my blog.  Feel free to use any of them if they tickle your fancy.

I am off now to share my creation with my pals in the Snippets Playground  where we are encouraged to make use of our offcuts/leftovers from previous creations.  

There was even talk of the paddling pool being dragged out of storage today but I might be a bit late to enjoy that now.   It is just a shame we aren't allowed to have a slide from the tree house that would whoosh us into the pool .. .. now that would be fun!  But never mind .. .. we can't have everything can we.  Rules if rules where health and safety are concerned I suppose, and anyway we wouldn't want to land on Dudley if he decides to take a "cooling off" dip too.

Hopefully catch you again soon.  

TEENY TINY FRIDAY

Hi Everyone

I hope you have had a good week and you are all lined up for a lovely Bank Holiday weekend, which apparently is predicted to be a scorcher .. .. .. we will have to wait and see.

Just popping in quickly with one of my Teeny Tiny Creations which measure a whole 9cm square!

This used:

Flower Die:  First Edition Flower Dies
Sentiment Die:  Unbranded from internet
Snippets of card and paper
WeRMemory Keepers:  Envelope Punch Board
Embossing Folder "Petals-a-Plenty" (sorry I don't know the maker)
My Trusty Sewing Machine

It has been quite a while since my embossing folder box has been opened.  Must make amends there.

So there we go .. .. a teeny tiny card ahead of a lovely big long weekend (which will no doubt fly by in the blink of an eye).

Enjoy it whatever you are doing.

BLASTS FROM THE PAST

Hi Playmates

I hope that you are all doing well and your week has got off to a good start for you.

I am on a mission to use up my old paper packs/pads that are taking up valuable space in my craft pod .. .. .. some of which only have a few pages left.  

My share today uses just one sheet from a very old paper pack and rectangular sketch one from my sketch library:

This used:

Backing Paper:  Papermania "Capsule Collection - Parisienne Blue"
Sentiment:  Unmounted Stamp Company "BD-FR-01 Word Frame" Circadesign.co.uk (very,very old)
Memory Box Dies:  "98261" Kaleidoscope Butterfly and "98262" Moonlight Butterfly
First Edition Craft "Nesting Stamp Dies"
Sizzix Thinlets Flower Dies - Tattered Florals:  661806
Ribbon
Hot fix Nailheads
My Trusty Sewing Machine

and Sketch One from my rectangular sketch library

So lots of old stash gathered together and used for this little creation and I think I have fallen in love with navy and gold as a colour combo.

ONE FOR THREE

Hi Playmates

A little bit of craft time has worked its way into my life this weekend (woo hoo!) and with so many cards needed I decided the best way to make use of my time was to simply start working my way through the sketches in my libraries.  They certainly save me making decisions as I know exactly where I am going before I even start.

So I am beginning with the very first square sketch I designed .. .. .. ..way back in July 2015, and this is how I have used it

This used:

Image:  Penny Black "Scented Garden - 4133J"
Sentiment:  Penny Black "Loads of Love - 30-146"
Backing Papers:  All snippets of various Pink Petticoat design papers (sadly no longer trading)
Spellbinders Circle and Scalloped Circle dies
ProMarkers
Woodware Heart Punch
Hot Fix Nail Heads
My Trusty Sewing Machine
and Sketch Number1 from my Square Sketch Library which is on the tab at the top of my blog 

and here are the snippets I started off with

but the eagled eyed amongst you 

.. .. .. and so as not to get into trouble with the playground snippet inspection committee .. .. ..  

I will confess here and now that the blue dotted paper got substituted for a snippet of blue striped paper because my card was starting to look a bit "too dotty".

So three challenges for my little creation:

The Snippets Playground - where we are encouraged to use up any leftovers we have lying around .. .. and they don't have to be just paper/card.

The Penny Black Saturday Challenge - where you get to show off your Penny Black goodies.  

This month it is their usual "anything Penny Black" or the option of "your favourite Penny Black stamp".   

This stamp is "one of my many favourites" mainly because it is quick and fun to colour and secondly it works for males as well as females depending on the backing papers.

and last but certainly not least

The As You Like it Challenge - who would like to see your favourite sketch/layout put to good use.

This sketch isn't my favourite as in "which of my sketches I love to use the most" .. .. .. but it is my favourite in that it was the first one I ever created many, many years ago and has led me to so far create 57 square sketches and 26 rectangular ones.  I have loads more scribbled in a little notebook waiting to be transferred into a computer drawn version .. .. .. but the design programmes keep being replaced.  

I first started out using a Serif Programme and that was replaced by Affinity Designer which I was starting to get my head around, but that has now been replaced by Affinity by Canva.  My poor little brain has another new learning curve .. .. .. but hopefully I will enjoy the journey.

In the meantime enjoy the rest of your weekend and as already mentioned please feel free to use any of my sketches if you think they will help you.

SLOWLY COMING BACK

Hi Everyone

As you have probably guessed there haven't been many opportunities for me to escape into my little craft room recently .. .. .. a certain special someone has been keeping me very busy for quite a long time now .. .. .. and she still is bless her.  If I am not physically with her then it comes in the form of oodles of paperwork, combined with lots of worrying and phone calls .. .. .. and hoping I haven’t missed anything or let her down in some way.  My brain just never seems to shut off from all that is going on with her.

Mum has needed to be transferred to another nursing home which is thankfully closer to all three of us kids, so our travelling time has been greatly reduced which means we have more time to physically spend with Mum rather than driving.  It is a lovely home where nothing seems too much trouble and the staff are all super smiley and friendly .. .. .. .. despite the challenging occupants.  There must be a super special mould that is used to make amazing people like these because not just anyone could do what they do day after day, week after week.

I have certainly been missing my crafting big time though over these last few months as have my customers and stock box .. .. but hopefully now that most of the paperwork and changes of address have been done (yet again) .. .. a little crafting time is going to wheedle  its way slowly back into my life. Even if it is only the odd half hour or so here and there.  I love my little escape place where all the worries of my world get to disappear, for a little while.  

There are always a few crafty bits in my bag when visiting Mum .. .. .. so if it is one of her “hard on asleep and completely out of it” days (which most of them unfortunately are nowadays) I sit and do a bit of colouring, fussy cutting or die cutting with my tiny little Sizzix Sidekick.  But I like to think that she knows I am with her and that she has heard my voice .. .. .. even if she hasn’t responded. 

But this does mean I am building up quite a nice little collection of bits and pieces ready for turning into cards when time is being kind to me .. .. and my card today makes use of "just a few" of those little die  cuts. 

This used:

First Edition Craft "Cog Dies"  (very old now but still well loved)  -  still lots of diecuts left too
Slatted stencil and Pumice Stone Distress Ink
Sentiment:  A very old wooden Papermania favourite that doesn't have a name :-(
Corner Rounding Punch
Hot Fix Nailheads
My Trusty Sewing Machine

I am running over to the Snippets Playground (if I can remember the way after all of this time) as everything I have used made use of snippets, apart from the card base.  Even the backing paper started life as a huge 12 x 12 piece of design paper once upon a time.

So now I have made my comeback I will see if I can remember how to link up LOL!!!

I hope all is well with everyone and your lives are running more smoothly than mine.

Take care and have a good day.