Ribbon Carousel Challenge - RCC32

I have another challenge card to show today - this time for RCC32 using inspiration photos:

I just love these Christmassy colours and I thought this would be the perfect chance to try a technique I saw here. Here is my card:

I used Kraft for my base and my  main layer. I stamped my Joy sentiment from Wings of Joy in Versamark ink and then embossed with white powder. I then coloured the inside of the image with my Copic markers. This is so effective and I will be using this technique again! I applied a white Kaisercraft rubon along the bottom and then looped some Pure Poppy ribbon above this, sewing a white button on one side.

On the inside, I applied another strip of the same rubon and then cross stitched a border above using some red thread.  Finally I stamped my sentiment from Wings of Joy in Versamark ink and then embossed again with white powder.

Such a simple card to make, but I love the effect it creates!

Supplies
Stamps: Wings of Joy (TE)
Cardstock: Kraft (PTI)
Ink: Versamark
Accessories: Copic Markers; Pure Poppy twill ribbon (PTI); white embossing powder (SU); white button; white rubon (Kaisercraft)

CSAYL - Be Inspired

Hello again,

This week's challenge over at the CSAYL blog is to be inspired using this gorgeous photo:

As soon as I saw it I loved the colour combo but knew I didn't have any background paper to match so I set about creating my own! I got the inspiration for this background from the latest issue of Australian Cardmaking, Stamping and Papercraft magazine, where copics can be used to create a check/plaid background. I have also decided to enter this card into the Sweet Sunday Sketch Challenge #122 using this sketch:



I used Tempting Turquoise cardstock for my base and layered a colour I never use - retired Gable Green and then added my background layer on top. I created the background by ruling up my lines lightly with pencil first and then using my copics to draw in the thin and thick lines. This was so much fun and I LOVE the result and will be doing this much more in the future.

I stamped the Joy image from Taylored Expression's Wings Of Joy set in Tuxedo Black ink and coloured it in with my copic markers, adding some Glossy Accents to the berries. I then cut and embossed this with my circle nesties. While still in the die, I sponged some blue pigment ink around the edges.  I then adhered some Hawaiian Shores ribbon and mounted my main image on top. The front was finished off with some AnnaBelle Stamps sprinkles.

On the inside I stamped the bird image from Wings of Joy in Tuxedo Black ink and coloured it in with copics. I then added the Merry Christmas sentiment in Old Olive ink.

The CSAYL girls have come up with some wonderful creations, so be sure to have a look over at the CSAYL blog.

I am now officially on two week's holidays so hopefully, fingers crossed, I will be able to have some more regular posts on my blog and stop chasing my tail!

Have a great weekend!

Supplies

Stamps: Wings Of Joy (Taylored Expressions)

Cardstock: Stampers Select White (PTI); Tempting Turquoise, retired Gable Green (SU)

Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento); Old Olive (SU); blue pigment ink (Martha Stewart)

Accessories: Hawaiian Shores ribbon (PTI); circle nestabilities (Spellbinders); copic markers; sprinkles (AnnaBelle Stamps); Glossy Accents (Ranger)

Taylored Expressions Sketch Challenge #137

Hello,

Hope your weekend is going well - did you watch the Royal Wedding on Friday?? I went over to my mum's and we watched it and as usual I cried!! Weddings just always make me sentimental and I thought they made just the loveliest couple! Its nice to see a good news story for a change!

Today I have a card for the current Taylored Expressions Sketch over at the TE blog:

I am yet to build up my Taylored Expressions collection further - love their stamps, so I used my very trusty and well loved set - Wings Of Joy to create my card.

I used Very Vanilla for my card base and first stamped an Argyle pattern from A Little Argyle, then stamped a small snowflake image from Wings Of Joy in Crumb Cake ink randomly over the front, inking all of the edges with Chamomile ink. The sentiment was stamped in Old Olive ink, cut into a banner with the edges inked as well. For my three scalloped layers, I used Real Red cardstock, some Green Tea Leaves paper and Old Olive card and all were punched with my Upper Crest border punch. I then used my sewing machine to straight stich along the Olive strip.

The main image was stamped in Old Olive ink and I used my red glitter pen to colour in the heart and berries. I ran this through my Cuttlebug with an oval nestability and then die cut a scallop oval as a border. Finally this layer was adhered with dimensionals.

I used the same snowflake image to randomly stamp over the inside layer and added my sentiment with Old Olive ink. A layer Green Tea Leaves paper was added to finish the inside off.

Thanks for visiting!!


Supplies
Stamps: Wings Of Joy (TE); A Little Argyle (PTI)
Cardstock: Very Vanilla, Real Red, Old Olive (SU); Green Tea Leaves DP (PTI)
Ink: Old Olive, Crumb Cake (SU); Chamomile & Chai Tea Dye inks (PTI)
Accessories: Oval & Scalloped Oval Nestabilities (Spellbinder); Red Atyou Spica glitter pen; Dimensionals (SU)' Upper Crest border punch (Fiskars); cream thread

CSAYL Challenge - Cut It Out!

Back again!!

This week's challenge over at the CSAYL blog is to Cut It Out - so use any stamp you like, but use the technique of paper piecing somewhere on your card. The prize for this week's challenge?? MacKenzie will pick one winner who will be chosen as a guest designer for one of the challenges in May!

I have chosen to use is CC Designs Santa Emma stamp and a coordinating bench image.

There are a lot of steps involved so I will list them as briefly as possible below for those who would like to know how I put this together:

1. Make base from Vintage Cream card and round bottom edges.

2. Stamp Emma and then mask and stamp the bench seat over the top. Colour with Copics.

3. Stamp Emma again onto grey cardstock and patterned paper. Cut out and adhere for her clothes.

4. Stamp snowflake image randomly in Bashful Blue ink and sprinkle glitter to centres using Quickie Glue pen as adhesive.

5. Add Quickie Glue pen to santa hat and sprinkle glitter over the top.

6. Cut two different strips of Designer Paper and one strip of Bashful Blue card, punching the bottom of one paper strip with scallop punch and adhere them underneath image.

7. Stamp sentiment on blue strip in Melon Mambo ink and wrap bakers twine around, tying in small knot.

8. Punch out large snowflake image and use heat and stick powder to adhere glitter. Thread more bakers twine through a button, tie in bow and adhere with glossy accents to snowflake. Adhere snowflake to card with Scor-Tape.

On the inside:

1. Adhere cream cardstock behind front of card to hide where Copics have shown through cardstock.

2. Cut another piece of cream cardstock with bottom corners rounded and adhere where message will go.

3. Cut two strips of Designer Paper, border punching one with scallop punch and adhere to cream layer.

4. Stamp sentiment in Melon Mambo ink.

5. Stamp snowflakes down the side with Bashful Blue ink.

Why not hop on over to the CSAYL blog, check out the other designers' creations and link yours too before midnight next Thursday for your chance to be a guest designer!

Thanks for looking,

Supplies
Stamps: Santa Emma, Sugar Plums Bench  (CC Designs); Wings of Joy (TE)
Cardstock: Vintage Cream (PTI), Bashful Blue, Retired Rose Red DP (SU); Designer Paper (Kaisercraft)
Ink: Tuxedo Black (Memento); Melon Mambo, Bashful Blue, Versamark (SU)
Accessories: Heat and Stick Powder, Dazzling Diamonds glitter, Scallop border punch (SU); Copics; Snowflake Punch (Marvy); Bakers Twine (MFT); Hibiscus Burst button (PTI); Quickie Glue Pen (Sakura); Glossy Accents (Ranger); Scor-Tape

CSAYL - I Can See Right Through That!

Hello peeps!
I am here with this week's CSAYL challenge - I Can See Right Through That - use vellum on your card. The sponsor of this week's challenge is In Style Stamps:

 

and the winner of this week's challenge will be able to use 4 free digis of their choice! For this challenge I decided to have a go at a pop up card which is a first for me, but I will definately try this again - heaps of fun!!

The beauty of digi stamps is the ability to resize them and for this project I had to substantially reduce the size of the monkey to fit the pop up section on the inside. You can click on the image to see a closer view.

The steps for making this card are as follows:

1. Cut a Chocolate Chip rectangle of cardstock and adhere to white base measuring 6 x 4 ''.

2. Print out Kissmas Monkey image on another small  piece of white cardstock and colour with Copics. Adhere to centre of chocolate layer.

3. Cut a rectangle white piece for card front and cut out a circle with a 2 1/8" nestablility.

4. Run this layer through the Cuttlebug with Swiss Dots Embossing Folder.

4. Cut a vellum circle with a 3" nestability.

5. Cut a third circle from white cardstock 2 5/8" and then run it through Cuttlebug again with 2 1/8" circle to make a circular frame.

6. Adhere the vellum circle behind the circle opening in the embossed layer to create a window.

7. Add glitter to circular frame with heat and stick powder. Adhere around circle opening.

8. Tie ribbon around left side of embossed layer and then adhere to card front.

9. Stamp sentiment in Chocolate Chip ink, cut into a banner and adhere below circle.

10. Stamp a snowflake in Pumpkin Pie ink and adhere to bottom of ribbon with a silver rhinestone.

Inside

11. Cut a white layer slightly smaller that card base, score in the middle and also 1 inch on either side of centre line.

12. Stamp mistletoe image and adhere a smaller resized version of Kissmas Monkey to one side after colouring with Copics.

13.Fold along score lines and adhere inside card.

14. Atttach a layer of Pumpkin Pie card, matted with So Saffron card to bottom of card inside.

15. Stamp Merry Christmas sentiment in Chocolate Chip ink on white cardstock and adhere to So Saffron layer.

You have until midnight next Thursday to enter by linking your card to the CSAYL blog and while there, make sure you check out the rest of the DT's creations!


Supplies
Stamps: Kissmas Monkey digi (In Style Stamps); Wings of Joy (TE); Season of Joy (SU)
Cardstock: Stamper's Select White (PTI); Chocolate Chip, So Saffron, Pumpkin Pie (SU)
Ink: Chocolate Chip, Pumpkin Pie (SU)
Accessories: Swiss Dots Embossing Folder (Cuttlebug); Circle Nestablilities (Spellbinders); Copic markers; Silver Rhinestone (Kaisercraft); red ribbon; vellum; heat and stick powder, Dazzling Diamonds glitter (SU)

Seasons Greetings and New Year's Resolutions

Hello,
I hope everyone has had a very merry Christmas and I wish you all a very happy, safe and prosperous 2011. We had a lovely Christmas, sharing the day with the kids at home and Grandparents visiting for a couple of days. I never achieved everything I wanted to before Christmas and I did something unforgiveable - I had to give some members of the family cards that weren't handmade!! That is an absolute no-no in my house - but I just ran out of time to finish making my cards as other Christmas preparations took over.  Anyway, one project that I did manage to complete was a handmade calendar for my mum and mother in-law.

I purchased the frame from Taylored Expressions along with the plastic sleeves and the plain downloadable calendar templates. I gave the frame two coats of white acrylic paint with a light sanding in between. Then I set about choosing suitable images to stamp along the top of each page, trying to fit the theme of each month where possible. Each page was finished with either some ribbon or border punched cardstock and other finishing touches such as Glossy Accents to add shine or glitter to give a little sparkle. This was the most fun project I have worked on in ages and I am itching to make one for myself now! Below are the completed months. Click on each image for a closeup.

Here is a close up of the glitter added to August's image:

As the New Year is fast approaching, I have been giving much thought to my New Years Resolutions. I thought I would share them on here to make me more accountable and they will serve as a constant reminder to be followed:

1. Become fit and healthy and stick to it!!! I have joined countless gyms over the year and I have to admit that the last time I joined was the most successful. Unfortunately I got a slight tear in my achilles from doing step classes, so this all came to a halt. However I did recently  buy a cross trainer which is looking very lonely in my family room, so there are no excuses from Jan 1st!! I would like to reach 40 in much better shape and I have a couple of years to achieve this.

2. Manage the budget more successfully. I know this is probably on most people's to do list, but due to my passion for this hobby, I am very impulsive and as I order a lot of products online, it is more economical to blow the budget and order a ridiculous amount of products. I will still be buying online but I have to remember to use my ever-growing craft supplies up as well.

3. Start making Christmas cards now! As mentioned before, I didn't manage to give all my close friends and relatives a handmade card and that is just not on! I have decided that each time I create a new card, I will make a Christmas card using the same sketch or same colour combo at the same time. If I can make one each week or two, I will be close to reaching my target by December. So expect some Christmas spirit to be shared throughout the year!

4. Balance my time more efficiently. This should probably be number 1 on the list according to my husband! Since I have started this blog, my stamping mojo has skyrocketed and not a night goes by when I am not posting or creating a card much to my husband's disdain. He is THE best husband in the world as he keeps the house together while I am off in my craft heaven, but I think it's time I picked up some of the load, not to  mention focus on some valuable family time as the kids seem to be growing up too fast. I will still be posting as regularly, I just need to become more time efficient.

5. Buy an SLR camera! This is my number one purchase that I wish to make in 2011. I find that I am unable to capture the finer details of my cards and achieve closeups with my little camera.

So there it is - written down for all the world to see and I am determined to achieve all four of these resolutions. I might update on how I am going with them throughout 2011.

Thanks for visiting and  I will be back very soon.

Supplies
Stamps: All in the family, Trendy Trees, Thoughts and Prayers (SU); Tiny Treats- Valentine, Fancy Flourishes, Vintage Picnic, Round and Round, Scattered Showers, Scattered Showers Additions, Holiday Button Bits (PTI); Bubbly (Penny Black); Wings of Joy (TE); Spring Chicks Retired (Elzybells);Charlotte's Holiday Mail (Paperworks Co)
Cardstock: Very Vanilla, Kraft, Pretty In Pink, Basic Grey, Old Olive, Certainly Celery, Chocolate Chip, Baja Breeze, Ski Slope DSP - Retired (SU); White Basics (PTI)
Ink: Tuxedo Memento Black; Old Olive, Chocolate Chip, Certainly Celery, So Saffron, Pretty In Pink,Night of Navy, Baja Breeze, Real Red, Not Quite Navy

Accessories: Copic Markers; Frame Your Imagination Stand, 6x6 Page Protectors, 6x6 Calendar Download (TE); Stampin' Write markers, Scalloped Border Punch, Scalloped Oval Punch, Small Oval Punch, Dazzling Diamonds Glitter, Certainly Celery Ribbon (SU); Glossy Accents (Ranger); Scor-Tape; miscellaneous ribbon

12 Year Old Birthday

Hi there!

This is the first of my card orders that has been created for a friend. For this card I used Taylor's Sketch Challenge TESC 134:

She requested a card for a 12 year old girl who is very girly but has a love of chickens! Although this sounded challenging  I was determined to find a stamp that would be suitable and found this Pink Cat Studio Digi Stamp - Birds Make a Giant Cupcake which is totally adorable.

I started with a Vintage Cream base and layered some pink cardstock I had in my stash. This side layer uses some green cardstock with My Mind's Eye Quite Contrary paper (my favourite paper at the moment). The next layer uses Vintage Cream cardstock as the mat with the reverse side of the Quite Contrary paper . Some pearls were added to the side and some Hibiscus Burst ribbon attached. I used my Tiny Tags Cuttlebug die to create the tag and stamped the flowers and numbers in Old Olive Ink and Pretty In Pink Ink using my Simple Serif Alphabet stamps from Stampin' Up. This was attached to the ribbon with a jump ring.

The main image uses the Pink Cat Studio digi stamp - Birds Make A Giant Cupcake and this was coloured in with my Copics. This final layer was then cut and embossed using my circle nestablities and mounted on dimensionals.

The inside of the card has a layer of pink cardstock and then Vintage Cream. The sentiment is from Papertrey Ink's Heartfelt Basics  stamp set and also uses the flower image from the Simple Serif set from Stampin Up. The flowers were scattered randomly to underline the sentiment.

Another really fun card to make - oh how I love colouring with Copics!! Very addictive! I will be back on the weekend with more.

Take care,


Supplies
Stamps: Birds Make a Giant Cupcake - digi image(PCS); Simple Serif (SU); Heartfelt Basics (PTI)
Cardstock: Vintage Cream (PTI); My Minds Eye - Quite Contrary Designer Paper; Miscellaneous Green and Pink card
Ink: Pretty In Pink, Old Olive (SU)
Miscellaneous: copic markers; corner rounder; Circle Nestablities (Spellbinders); Tiny Tags (Cuttlebug); Hibiscus Burst ribbon (PTI); Pearls (Kaisercraft); jump ring

Inkspirations and Embellish challenge

Hello,
I have another Christmas card for you today and this uses a couple of challenges. Firstly I used Makeesha Byl's Inkspirations Sketch Challenge #49:

 
I also found a colour challenge that I just had to try from Embellish Magazine using these colours:

 I knew straight away that I wanted to use Taylored Expressions Wings of Joy stamp set as it is fun to colour and also has cute whimsical Christmas images.  To keep in line with this, I took myself out of my comfort zone. I usually create cards that are simple and perhaps a classic style with very clean lines. However I thought I would try for a more shabby vintage look and I have to admit at first I thought I had made a mistake as it didn't look as crisp and clean as usual, but by the end I loved this card!!

I started out by using white for my base and adding another layer of white on top which I ran through my Cuttlebug with my Linen Impression Plate (if you click on this image the linen impression will be clearer). I then sewed a border using some linen thread. I created my own background paper by using the Guidelines Two background set with Riding Hood Red, Pretty In Pink and Vintage Sepia inks. Green rhinestones were added to the centre of each image and then this was mounted on Riding Hood Red cardstock.

The main image uses the birds from the Wings of Joy set which I stamped in Versafine Vintage Sepia ink and coloured with my Copics, including some shadow with my C1 grey marker. To add an extra touch I finished off the berries and heart with Glossy Accents to give some shine.

This image was then cut and embossed with an oval nestablity die and layered on some Riding Hood Red card cut with a scalloped oval nestability die. Some chocolate chip ribbon was layered underneath this and then it was mounted onto the card. The sentiment is also from the Wings of Joy set stamped in Vintage Sepia ink and cut to make a banner. To add another vintage touch, all of the cardstock edges were swiped with Chamomile tea dye ink.

The inside of the card was kept simple with another sentiment from the Wings of Joy set and some more hand stamped background paper to finish the theme.

I have my daughter home sick with me today so I won't get much stamping done, but I do intend to disappear into my new craft room tonight when all the kids are in bed (yes after some friends' suggestions, my husband has let me take over the empty formal lounge and buy a great craft table and buffet to store all my supplies!!). I will be back in a couple of days as I have more orders for cards to be made so I will have lots to show.

Thanks for looking - its so good to start this blog and know that some of you out there like looking at cards created by little old me!

Supplies

Stamps: Wings of Joy (TE); Guidelines Two (PTI)

Cardstock: White Basics, Guidlines Grid cardstock (PTI); Riding Hood Red (SU)

Ink: Riding Hood Red, Pretty in Pink (SU); Vintage Sepia (Versafine); Vintage Duo - Chamomile (PTI)

Miscellaneous: Copic markers; Rhinestones (Kaisercraft) Oval and Scalloped Oval Nestabilities (Spellbinders); Linen Impression Plate (PTI); Chocolate Chip Ribbon (SU); Glossy Accents(Ranger); Linen Thread