Sunday 30 September 2018

Commissioned Wedding Card


I was asked to make a card using this lovely LOTV image for a Wedding which you can see was yesterday. This is a digi simply print and today is the last day you will be able to buy it along with all the LOTV digis. I used an old LOTV paper pad as the card is 8x8. The pretty rose ribbon is from Crafty Ribbons and the flowers are from I am Roses and Wild Orchid. I coloured and sparkled a wooden heart too.

Challenges
Crafteezee anything goes 
Creative Inspirations anything goes

A few jobs this morning then hopefully back to the Christmas cad making. How are yours coming along? I am doing very well this year.

Saturday 29 September 2018

A sad day


Sadly this will be our last challenge at A Gem of a Challenge as Janet is closing her website. Our them is Halloween colours and I chose to use just two, purple and black. Do come and join in our last challenge. Janet will continue to sell on Etsy where you will be able to claim your prize.

I like to keep sympathy cards simple and used some old black and white papers, Pink Gem topper, wooden butterfly coloured with a Wink of Stella pen and some black pearl hearts. The sentiment is Inkylicious.

Friday 28 September 2018

Sending smiles


I made this for a friend whose Birthday was Wednesday. As she has a dog I thought this cute Annabel image was just the right one for her. I used one of the old art pads this time, diecutting it and then doodling around the edge. The papers are Liliybee. I used Doohickey fence, Memory Box umbrella and cloud dies.

Thursday 27 September 2018

A child is born


Tiring day yesterdsy, up at 5.15 and setting up at the hospital from 7.15. Had a really good day with lots of sales, many of them Christmas. In bed at 10, good sleep and ready for what today holds, starting with some housework, boo. I have used another of the new Christmas art sheets launched this week at LOTV. This one is from girlie Christmas. I used some of the digi paper, which is actually grey but looks lilac on here. The silver glitter mesh is from The Works. I diecut the hexagon shape for a change from a square card. The star was diecut from white glitter card using a Memory Box die and I added some flowers from Hobbycraft.

Wednesday 26 September 2018

Venice


I made this simple card for some very good friends anniversary yesterday. They don't like fussy and as they have just been on a cruise and one of the places they visited was Venice I thought this image which came with Making Cards magazine was perfect. The paper is from the same mag and I just added a LOTV sentiment, some seam binding and a diecut sun using a MFT die.

Very early start today as we are at the hospital craft fair. Tonight we are going for a carvery with these friends wher we shall be telling them all about our holiday in Cornwall.

Tuesday 25 September 2018

Carol Singing Bear


My new Christmas art sheets arrived from LOTV yesterday and I will be making some samples with them and the new papers once they arrive,  However I couldn't wait to get started so I used some digi papers from LOTV which will only be available until the end of the month so if you want any of their digi stamps, simply prints or papers you only have a few days left to buy them and they are on an incredible offer too.

This cutie is from the new carol singing sheet and I diecut him with a Lawn Fawn stitched circle die. I added some snowflake ribbon, a LOTV digi stamp and a snowflake banner  cut using a die from The Works.  I added some fun flock to his hat and used a Wink of Stella clear pen on the snow.

Challenges
Creative Inspirations anything goes 
ABC Christmas S is for snow 
The Paper Shelter sentimental

Monday 24 September 2018

I must look my best


I loved making this card for my friend Lynsey. She loves fairies, pink, flowers and glitter and this card has all of those.  I used an image from an old LOTV art pad and diecut with a MFT wonky stitch oval die.  The papers are Anna Marie which I distressed. The lovely ribbon is from Crafty Ribbons and I used some of their lace for the bow. The sentiments are LOTV, flowers from Wild Orchid. I found the pink leaves in my sash and they matched perfectly. I added glitter to her wings, powder puff and flowers.

Challenges
Crafteezee anything goes 
Creative Inspirations anything goes

I came back from Cornwall with some images coloured so hoping to get crafting later today. I am also expecting some of the new LOTV Christmas papers and art sheets to make samples and I have a craft fair on Wednesday so back to being busy as usual.

Saturday 22 September 2018

Home from holiday

We have been away on holiday since 13th September. We stayed the first night in a Premier Inn at Weston super Mare and then Friday morning finished the journey to Cornwall. We stayed in a lovely cottage in a little village near Truro. On 21st we travelled as far as Watford and spent another night in a Premier Inn and will be driving the rest of the way home this morning. Breaking the journey up that way is so much better as it is a long way to go in one day. We should be home early afternoon and the first job will be a bit of unpacking, get the washing machine going and then shopping.

I took my Copic case and some images with me along with lots of sewing so I am hoping I am coming home with some coloured images ready to make into cards and some completed sewing projects.

If I haven't managed much commenting whilst I have been away I will catch up with you all as soon as I can.

Thursday 20 September 2018

Olivia


This is another of the new cute digis from Pink Gem, Olivia in Boots. I used the precoloured one to make my plaque.   I coloured some wooden snowflakes with a Zig wood craft pen and then used a clear Spectrum Noir sparkle brush pen. I added some diecut MFT Winter Trees and a Memory Box stitched snowflake. I used fun flock on her hat and added sparkle to the ice with the sparkle pen.

Challenges
ABC Christmas T is for teal 
Creative Inspirations anything goes

Wednesday 19 September 2018

Vroom


And this is the last card from the LOTV action time art sheet. I used the Ech Park dots and stripes papers again and a Fiskars tag punch. I love using spotted and striped papers. They create great patterns and are favourites of mine to use on Christmas cards too. I have seen very dew Christmas papers for sale so far this year and those that I have seen are very uninspiring. If you have found any nice bright Christmas papers do let me know.

Tuesday 18 September 2018

Seeing Stars


I love coming up with different designs for felt decorations and Pinterest is a great source of inspiration. I saw some felt stars on there and thought I could make some of those. I like to take the ideas I see and devise my own individual makes. I recently bought these cute snowmen buttons on Ebay and thought they were perfect to add to the stars. I used an Xcut die set. The red and blue ones have glittered felt and the green one has some Christmas holly material added to the plain felt. 

Challenges
ABC Christmas S is for snow 

Monday 17 September 2018

Lili of the Valley

In case you haven't seen the news Lili of the Valley will not be selling digis after the end of the month. The EU regulations on selling digis have become much stricter and have made it very difficult to sell digis to other countries without calculating individual countries' taxes. So the good news is that they have some incredible offers on digis until the end of the month. The bad news is no more digis after that date. Of course this means no more Digistamp Boutique images which have only just moved to LOTV. So if you want any of those get them before the end of the month.

The other good news is that they will be going back to selling rubber stamps and printed paper pads. I love their papers and am very excited about them coming back. They will also be selling more of their precoloured art sheets which are great quality.

They hope to set up an Etsy shop to sell a smaller range of digis as Etsy will deal with the tax implications. 

It is such a shame that bureaucracy spoils things for small businesses. 

Sunday 16 September 2018

Up the stairs


This is the last of my LOTV art sheet images from the furry friends sheet. I teamed it with a LOTV sentiment, MFT hearts and stripes papers and flowers from Wild Orchid. The stitched square die is from The Works. These are bigger than many of the more expensive die sets and cut beautifully.

Saturday 15 September 2018

Cheers!


Our new challenge at A Gem of a Challenge is one for the ladies. I used this fun precoloured digi with Lilybee Victoria Park papers. The sentiment is Little Claire. I added the ribbon and then couldn't decide how to decorate it. I don't often have a blank like that, usually the card comes together easily. However as soon as I decided on diecut flowers and used various paper scraps I was happy with the result. I used some Gerbera dies from Printable Heaven and inked the edges, added diecut leaves using a Britannia die and some pearls.

Friday 14 September 2018

Hanging around


Another LOTV art sheet card today. This one is from the action time sheet. Although they are precoloured I added some clouds using chalk and a MFT mini cloud stencil. The papers are Echo Park dots and stripes. I created the pattern just using scraps from the pad and a Fiskars tag punch. The sentiment is LOTV everyday grungy.

Thursday 13 September 2018

Snow Bunny


I made this card for Crafts Beautiful which is published today. I used one of the cute new LOTV images and coloured it with Copics. The papers are digi ones from LOTV and the sentiment is also LOTV. I used MFT wonky stitched oval and Winter tree dies and a Joy snowflake die. I also added my favourite fun flock to the snow.

Challenges
ABC Christmas S is for snow

Wednesday 12 September 2018

Swing Kitty


I love these new art sheets from Lili of the Valley. This is another from the furry friends sheet.  I have had so many samples to make using precoloured images but I will get some colouring done again soon.

I used MFT hearts and stripes paper, MFT wonky stitched oval and scalloped stitched edge dies. The sentiment is LOTV, ribbon from The Range and flowers from Wild Orchid.

Challenges
The Ribbon Girl anything goes 
Creative Inspirations anything goes 
Crafteezee anything goes

Tuesday 11 September 2018

Love Heart


I recently bought this large freestanding heart from Craft Heaven and decided to go with a shabby chic look. It would make a lovely Wedding or Anniversary present. I made it Sunday and put it out for sale yesterday. It was the second item I sold and we then went on to sell lots more items including some Christmas ones. In fact I had my best sales since Dec 2016. A tiring day but worthwhile and we always meet some lovely people. A day at the hospital makes you realise how lucky you are. 

The heart was painted with Rustoleum chalk paint. I coloured some cheesecloth with vintage photo distress ink, diecut a heart from patterned hessian and stamped the Inkylicious sentiment using brown ink on kraft. After assembling these I added ribbon from Crafty Ribbons, lace, flowers from Wild Orchid and I am Roses, small wooden hearts from Hobbycraft, a Prima butterfly and some burlap butterflies. I coloured the large wooden butterfly with a Zig wood marker and then a white Wink of Stella brush pen.

Challenges
Simon Says stamp on it 
Crafteezee anything goes 
As you like it favourite non-card make (This was difficult as I love scrapbooking and sewing as well as making shabby chic plaques. I love using different textures on a plaque to create a keepsake.) 
Stamping Sensations Something beginning with B (butterflies, burlap, brown, beige)
The Ribbon Girl anything goes

Monday 10 September 2018

Let it Snow

This is my favourtite of the new DSB Word Art images. No surprise there as this one has a snowman. Being precoloured they do make quicker cards. I used my fave Bo Bunny Altitude papers, Crafter's Companion icicle die and MS snowflake punches. All it needed to finish were pearls and Stickles.

Challenges
Creative Inspirations anything goes 
ABC Christmas S is for snow 
The Ribbon Girl anything goes 

Out early today to trade at the hospital. The shop is packed with so much this time as I have put all my Christmas cards and decorations out. I have spread them around the other things but next month will have a Christmas display with them all together I think.

Sunday 9 September 2018

Joy


Another of the new DSB precoloured Word Art images released tomorrow at LOTV. I added some sparkle to this one using a sparjkle brush pen on the pudding and adding Stickles to the icing. The papers are Bo Bunny Altitude. I used MFT wonky stitched rectangle and Memory Box holly border dies adding some tiny red pearls.

Challenges
ABC Christmas T is for teal 
The Ribbon Girl anything goes

It is the last powerboat racing day today and as it starts at noon hubby set off at 8 this morning. The rescue team are meeting up for breakfast and then they will be launching the boats and setting out the course. He will be home by 8 so I will be spending the day alone, mainly crafting.

Saturday 8 September 2018

Keepy uppy


Another of the new LOTV art sheets today. This is another from the action time sheet. I used a Go Kreate die to create the card and image shapes and added MME chalk paper.  I kept the layout simple adding some football ribbon and punched stars.

We are at the hospital shop on Monday so will be going to set it up with my stock this morning.

Friday 7 September 2018

Jingle all the way


Well it has been a few days since I posted a Christmas card but as DSB are launching some new Christmas images and sentiments on Monday at LOTV I have three to share with you over the next few days. I used one of the precoloured Word Art images. The papers are some of my faves Bo Bunny Altitude. I love the mix of aqua, teal and purple. I used an old MS snowflake border punch and my latest Christmas die. Isn't that a cute die at the top. It came from The Works and cuts beautifully. I added some bells to match the sentiment. They have very small holes so were quite difficult to thread but I'm glad I did as they finish the bunting off nicely.

Challenges
Creative Inspirations anything goes 
ABC Christmas T is for teal

Thursday 6 September 2018

Giddy Up


I have the second of my LOTV furry friend art sheet cards to share today. This is such a cute image. I used a MFT wonky stitched rectangle die, Echo Park dots and stripes papers, corner rounder punch and a LOTV sentiment. I love using spots and stripes to create layers on a card.
Challenges
The Ribbon Girl anything goes
Creative Inspirations anything goes

We are off to my Mum's today to do some cleaning jobs for her (the parts she can't reach) and then we will all go out for lunch.

Wednesday 5 September 2018

Autumn loves Autumn


I love Stamping Bella and have been longing for the opportunity to use this stamp Autumn loves Autumn. A friend's September Birthday was the perfect chance. It was one of the hardest images I have ever coloured as some of the pieces are so small. It looked so much better in real life than it photographed. It even looks like I didn't ground her but there is shading all around the image.  I have coloured her with Copics and added some doodling. The papers are Liliybee Autumn Spice. I used Lawn Fawn stitched leaf dies and Little Claire sentiment stamps. 

Challenges
Crafteezee anything goes 
The Ribbon Girl anything goes 
Stamping Sensations I spy something beginning with B (brown, Birthday)

Tuesday 4 September 2018

On my bike


This is another of the new art sheets from LOTV. This image is from the action time sheet. I love the sketchy look of this cute image. I used a Go Kreate frilly squares die to create the card shape. The paper is MME all things chalk, sentiment is LOTV. I created the banner using a MFT banner die and punched some stars in it for a change.

Monday 3 September 2018

Vintage new home card


We had a good day yesterday, the weather was gorgeous, the breakfast was yummy, went all round the garage sale, didn’t buy much but we walked 13000 steps. You may have seen the new home card I was asked to make which was on my blog last Friday. This is the card I made to send to the couple. As a complete contrast to the other card I went for a vintage style. The paper is Crafter's Companion vintage Wedding and I added some scrim from B&Q. The sentiment is Inkylicious. I used an old Tim Holtz on the edge townscape die I haven;t used for ages. I diecut it from kraft and coloured one house with Copics.  The sold sign is a Stamposaurus stamp and I added some green burlap and wooden flowers.  I would like to enter the anything goes challenge at Simon Says.

Another busy week ahead, how did I have time to go to work! Looking forward to a facial and back massage this afternoon.

Sunday 2 September 2018

Kite flying


Have you seen the new art sheets from Lili of the Valley? They are printed on lovely quality card and are only £1 each and each sheet contains 4 images so they are excellent value too. I was asked to make some cards with them and have several to share with you. This is one of the furry friends. I diecut an aperture in the paper which is Echo Park dots and stripes. I used a corner rounder punch, a kite from a pack I bought in America, some pearls and a LOTV everyday grungy sentiment stamp.

Anything goes Challenges at

We are going out for breakfast today, trying a new place which has opened on the recreational field about 20 minutes walk away and then we are walking round the estate as they are having a charity garage sale. We found a few bargains last year and it is good exercise too.

Saturday 1 September 2018

Hedgie Anniversary


Time for a new challenge at A Gem of a Challenge and our theme is Wedding/Anniversary/Engagement. There are so many cute couple images to choose from but I decide to go for these cute hedgies. I used the precoloured image and teamed it with Jen Hadfield everyday papers. I added a white heart doily, some wooden hearts from Hobbycraft and some red roses from Wild Orchid. The sentiment is from LOTV.  I would like to enter the anything goes challenge at Simon Says.