Remember to be grateful...

Hey,

As you know July was spent celebrating Hubby's 40th birthday.

He had x2 parties, a birthday vacay and x2 family lunches - phew.

I really wanted HIM to say 'thanks' to a small group of people that had helped make his birthday fun and who had given him gifts (gifting is always optional with us).

Knowing Hubby as I do, I knew that if I left it too long to make the cards the moment for him to write them out would pass...

So I looked around my desk for inspiration and came across an alcohol ink thank you card that was already made. I dug out x4 more alcohol ink panels (top x2 use the alcohol ink lift technique) and whipped up x4 more cards!

I am super pleased with these, they look great and used things that I had already made.

Don't you love it when you find desk loot? Almost as good as loop furniture (I live in a complex that has 'loops' and you can put out your old furniture on the loops) - see below for Hubby's new desk that we found 2 weeks ago in our loop.

Cx

Retro Rubber Challenge #117 Anything Goes..

Hey,

Welcome to another awesome Retro Rubber challenge.

We have everyone's fave theme this time -

Anything goes is always fun, but it does give me a bit of stage fright, all the things I could use!!

I had a fun playtime making my card today, it actually ended up spawning x2 cards!

It all started with this fun background that I made using a Dina Wakely stencil and distress oxides.

I used my newest tool the Wendy Vecchi Stay-Tion - it is amazing for stenciling.

I used a stitched rectangle die to trim down the stenciled panel, then I used a semi-circle die to cut a window. After I cut the window I decided that this card had to be a shaker!

The Dog stamps are Party Time by Hero Arts (no longer available) and I have had them since 2016 - true confession, this was their first-ever use..the shame.

I stamped the sentiment from a set I just bought second-hand (Pink Fresh Studio set) - directly onto the card blank. I love the sentiment and I thought it went perfectly with the happy dancing Dogs. I created the shaker piece and affixed it to the card blank. Then I added 3 of the dogs around the window.

I love it and I already sent it to a friend as a birthday card :)

Remember I said that I made x2 cards? Well here is the second card using the piece I cut out to create the shaker window and another one of the HA Dogs.

Looking forward to seeing your anything goes makes, be sure to pop on over to Retro Rubber and get inspired by the things the DT have made.

Challenge ends August 23rd.

Don't forget to tell us the age of your stamp, that is part of the fun of our challenge and please only enter 10 challenges including Retro Rubber.

Cx

Unleash the Kraken!

Hey,

Happy Monday!

I hope you had a fun weekend.

I unexpectedly went to see Billy Idol and Bryan Adams in concert, which was surprisingly awesome!

I am a big fan of the Kraken myth and when I saw the great Legendary stamp set by Avery Elle, I knew it had to be mine.

I stamped the Kraken and then masked him off so I could add the clouds, using my fave Dutchdoobadoo stencil.

Sadly as I started colouring him, one of my Copic's belched and did this -

Ugh..I mean ugh. There was no way that I was going to redo this entire thing... So I decided that my Kraken was bringing a cake to celebrate 'your' birthday. Nice save, even if I do say so myself!

To finish my card, I mounted it onto a white card blank, then I used a Lawn Fawn wave die to die-cut the top of my embossed 'sea' panel and added the cake and the sentiment.

Fun card, much more Kraken based cards to come.

Cx

Hello Baby Boy...

Hey,

I recently fell in love with the Loveable Laundry set by Newton's Nook, so I bought it whilst I was on vacay.

Then I got back to the news that a friend had her baby and it felt like kismet!

I stamped and watercoloured all of the fun onesies/babygrows using distress inks. I die-cut them out using the matching die, after I had coloured them.

I created a background for the onesies/babygrows using a Clearly Besotted stencil and Broken China Distress Oxide ink.

The sentiment uses a Technique Tuesday 'hello' die that I have had forever and the 'baby boy' is from the same set as the onesies/babygrows.

Cute, fun card to make, now it really needs to go in the post with the real-life onesies/babygrows that I bought him.

Cx

Newton's Nook Inky Paws: Summer..

Hey,

Happy Friday!!

Whilst I was on vacation Newton's Nook had an awesome new release - I may or may not have bought a lot of it :)

I thought that it would be fun to play along with their current Inky Paws challenge -

I used the great Newton's Melon stamp and die on my card. Did you know that Cat's actually LOVE Watermelon?! I know weird right.

I stamped a SSS sun all over a white panel and then die-cut a little window using Lawn Fawn Stitched Scalloped window die.

I then mounted the panel onto a bright yellow card blank and added the sentiment and Newton.

Fun card, love a bright Summer card.

Have a great weekend, I am getting back to the gym on Saturday and then attacking the laundry mountain (sigh).

Cx