INTERNATIONAL ART AND SOUL - CHALLENGE NO 22 - BUTTONS AND BOWS

Good afternoon fellow blogsters.  This fortnight our theme over at the IntAAS Challenge blog is 'Buttons and Bows'.  As it is nearly Christmas I thought I would be able to fit buttons and bows into a Christmas card without too much trouble.   In my stash I've had some really tiny buttons for a while and I decided to use them as 'berries'!!!

This is a 7" x 7" card so the wreath had to be quite large and the thought of using my two 'pine spray' dies over and over again through the machine was too daunting so I used my 'fern' punch and asked the maestro for his help.  I promised that he would get a mention in my post!!!  Bless him - he sat there with a piece of green card and punched out over 65 of these fronds (I think it was nearer 100 by the time he'd finished but I've got some left for other cards).  I cut out a few holly leaves to add to the design so I wasn't idle (sorry for giggling here!!!)  The sentiment is stamped and embossed with red embossing powder and I curled it slightly to make it stand away from the centre of the card.  The gold tape around the edge is quite glittery and shiny but it doesn't 'shed' glitter all over the place.  I love this tape sooooo much and have it in three different widths.

Ingredients

7" x 7" White card blank - Anna Marie Designs

Creative Expressions Embossing Folder - 'Snowflake Lattice'

Elizabeth Craft Designs Dies - 'Holiday Holly and Berries' die

Die-Namics Dies - Stiched Fishtail Flag Stax die

Punch - fern fronds (no name on the punch)

Sentiment - 'Merry Christmas' free with Love Cardmaking magazine

My Colour Studio - 'Red' Ultra Fine Embossing powder

Tartan ribbon and tiny red buttons - ancient stash from the cupboard!!

Glitter tape - stash

I hope you have the time to enter our challenge this fortnight (here) - we all love to see your designs and whilst you're there why don't you check out the work of the rest of the DT.

Big hugs to you all and take care!

Love Suexxx

CHRISTMAS CARDS ALL YEAR ROUND - NOVEMBER - CANDIES, COOKIES OR GINGERBREAD

Good morning fellow bloggers out there - I'm posting my mid-month reminder for the CCAYR Challenge today.  I've had this stamp for a while and thought as the theme included cookies (although over here we'd call them biscuits) this little cutie would be perfect.

I really enjoyed making this card because it was an idea which just came to me - like a light bulb moment!!!   Since having my own blog and becoming a DT member I've started using loads of digi images but my last three cards (one not yet posted) have all been stamps and I'd forgotten how rewarding it is to get a crisp image from a stamp I've inked and 'plotted'.

Ingredients

6" x 6" white card blank - Create and Craft (very old stash)
House Mouse Rubber stamp - 'Christmas Fireplace' set from Joanna Sheen
Sentiment stamp - 'Merry Little Christmas' set from Apple Blossom Clear Stamps
Label stamps - Christmas set from Lily of the Valley Clear Stamps
Tree Lights and rectangle die - Unbranded dies
Copics and Flexmarkers
White Glitter - free with magazine

I hope you can join in our challenge (here) we have a lovely crafty prize for the winner -

I'll say tara now 'cos I'm scheduling this one for tomorrow morning - hope I've done it right, I won't have time to fiddle with it 'cos we're going swimming and I'm hoping to manage at least 60 lengths before they kick us out!

Lots of big hugs to you all and I hope you are feeling OK.

Love Suexxx

INTERNATIONAL ART AND SOUL - CHALLENGE NO 21 - AUTUMN COLOURS

Hi there peeps - I'm posting a card I made for the IntAAS challenge this fortnight where our theme is 'Autumn Colours' - wonderful!!!  I decided to do something a little different this time.   I used a stamp that I've had for a while now to make an A5 card which is also quite simple in design (definitely simple for me that is).  Although it doesn't show very well in the pic, I stamped several images and then layered the open flower heads onto the main picture.   I'm not normally one for this technique but I did think that it would look good if I shaped the flowers a little.

Ingredients

A5 White Card blank - stash

Image - 'Boxed Daisies Trio' clear stamp from Woodware Craft Collection

Sentiment - Unbranded

Orange and green card - stash

Gems - stash

Copics/Flexmarkers

The stamp has a little border around it so I coloured that in a 'russety' brown then added the green and orange matting layers with a little black border to co-ordinate.  I shall be putting this one in my box for a future birthday.

Check out the cards that my teamies have made, then why not make one yourself and enter our challenge (here).  You have two weeks and as this is definitely the right time of year to be making Christmas cards (although some of you will be finishing off your cards by now!!!) why not try autumnal colours.

Anyway enough of me - I'm off to play with some House Mouse stamps - yum!  Sending you all big hugs ....


Love Suexxx

CRAFTY CALENDAR CHALLENGE - NOVEMBER - AUTUMN COLOURS

Hello friends and fellow bloggers - I'm posting a card for the Crafty Calendar November challenge where our theme is 'Autumn Colours'.    I know I've gone on about this before but autumn really is my favourite time of year because of the absolutely amazing reds, yellows, russets and oranges - and yes I tried to get them all onto my card!!!

When you see the picture it does look extra 'busy' because of the leaves I stamped onto the background card.  I used my ancient Perfect Pearls on them and in real life they look more subtle but the camera insisted on picking up every bit of the pearly sheen - typical!!

Ingredients

7" x 7" White Card blank - Anna Marie Designs
Image from t'internet  Colouring Pages
Berries - Anna Marie Designs
Leaves - Wild Orchid Crafts
Flat Pearls, Dies, Leaf Stamps - Unbranded
Card - stash
Perfect Pearls 
Flexmarkers

I really enjoyed using these colours with the berries and leaves and love how the camera picks up all the different hues  but I must apologise for the fact that the Perfect Pearls are shining so much that they have almost obliterated the 'Best Wishes' sentiment in the top left corner.  That aside I do hope you can enter our challenge (here)  this month, we have a fabulous crafty surprise for the winner!!!

Lots of big hugs to you all and don't forget to check out my DT teamies' cards!!!

Love Suexxx