Say yes to cake...

Hey,

Can you believe it is going to be Thanksgiving this week?!

2020 has whipped by!

I thought I'd share a couple of the things I made for the card drive that Ricky was doing.

When I was making the 100 cards for this drive I decided to properly play in my craft room, so that meant I used old faves or things that had only had 1 use.

I love the sentiment stamp I used here. It's by Stampin' Up and from their retired 'Amazing Life' set, I had to track it down :)

I paired with two different sets. The main photo actually uses a new to me Wendy Vecchi set 'Birthday Bash' it was a birthday gift and I love it. I coloured the cake with Copics and added nuvo drops in blue for a kind of 'royal' icing look. Royal icing was always my fave growing up, I loved it when my Momma made cakes using this technique.

The second card uses the Taylored Expressions 'Gus and Gertie' set - I love that Gertie is in a party hat here.

I loved how these came out, so I made doubles and kept them for my stash. 

The best thing about making for charity is being able to rediscover all of my stash, as there are not really hard and fast requirements, so you can make what you like.

If you are considering making cards for charity, Scrapbook.com run an all year round card drive called Cards for Kindness. I donate cards to them approx 3 times a year. I bet if you are a card maker you have a bunch of cards you've made for challenges, etc, donate them and share the joy.

Cx

As You See It: All Askew...

Hey,

Happy Sunday.

I hope you are having a good weekend so far.

Hubby and I got to catch-up with a good friend yesterday that we haven't seen in forever, so that was nice.

I have been looking around for 'new to me' challenges and I realised that x3 of my Retro Rubber teamies are on the As You See It challenge. So I thought I'd give it a whirl. And it just so happens that the current challenge is right up my street!

I love a sketch and I really like placing elements on my cards at jaunty angles, so perfect.

I REALLY wanted to use one of the stamps from my new 'Sweet Deer' set by Sizzix and Jen Long and I think it worked out really well here.

The papers are both by American Crafts from 6x6 pads and I die-cut them to size using stitched rectangle dies.

Because the Antler stamp has a little space for a sentiment I decided to tie it into my little banner and stamped 'Yay!' onto it.

I added some Nuvo crystal drops here and there for a little bit of sparkle.

I love the funky mix of patterns and especially the florals.

Fun card for a fun challenge, I will totally be playing along again.

Cx

Even more Christmas in July....

Hey,

So following on from yesterday's Christmas in July post, I wanted to share my Christmas make ;)

I bought these awesome Christmas Portraits stamps from Le Petite Market and couldn't wait a month to play with them (I start Christmas card making in August).

As with the Animal Astronaut cards, I retouched the images, so that they would be white against any background papers I added.

I coloured the images and added glitter glue, nuvo drops (coloured and glittery), spectrum noir sparkle pens and sequins / stars for interest.

Once I had stamped the sentiments, they looked a bit boring, so I added a glittery strip to the card blank, way more festive.

Feels pretty good to have the first batch of Christmas done.

Cx

Sketch Saturday #522 Just Me Digital...Christmas Llama..

Hey,

Happy Saturday to you and welcome to the latest sketch for the Sketch Saturday challenge.

Our sponsor this week is Just Me Digital and they are offering a prize of two digital stamps from their store.

Here's the sketch...

[about my image choice, include link to the digi]

I rotated the sketch, as I thought my Llama would work better that way and I printed the stamp and the sentiment that comes with it.

To create the scalloped border, I used a red spotty scrap paper and I broke out an ancient border PUNCH!! I honestly have forgotten about punches.. I added a strip of glittery paper behind the punched border for a bit more interest. 

I die-cut two white panels using Lawn Fawn Stitched hills dies and layered them just over the Llama. I added Nuvo drops to the hills and teeny tiny gems to each side that are my take on the stars in the sketch.

I love this card SO much, it's such a fun Christmas card.

I can't wait to see what you do with the sketch, but first check out what the rest of the DT have made over at Sketch Saturday.

Challenge ends 20th July 7pm GMT / 2pm EST

Cx

Sketch Saturday #520 Oddball Art...Stars

Hey,

Happy Saturday to you and welcome to the latest sketch for the Sketch Saturday challenge.

Our sponsor this week is Oddball Art and they are offering a prize of 3 digis.

This week you can choose any sketch from 215 - 519, I chose #296, I thought it would rotate really well.

I really like the Oddball Art dollar images, they are super versatile and I fell in love with Hand Drawn Stars, I could visualise my card the minute I saw the stamp.

As you can see I rotated the sketch, so that the stamp would work better. I really like when I get to bleed off the edge of the white panel..

I coloured my image with Promarkers and added Nuvo drops here and there for some sparkle. The little flag is die-cut from an ancient scrap of glittery paper!

The sentiment was one of my first ever Lawn Fawn sets and it still gets a lot of use.

I can't wait to see what you do with the sketch, but first check out what the rest of the DT have made over at Sketch Saturday.

Challenge ends 6 July 7pm GMT / 2pm EST

Cx

Sketch Saturday #518..Scrap N Dipity..Ice-Cream Mountain..

Hey,

Happy Saturday to you and welcome to the latest sketch for the Sketch Saturday challenge.

Our sponsor this week is Scrap N' Dipity and they are offering a prize of 1 digi from their store.

Here's the sketch...

I loved the fun Ice-Cream Mountain stamp, it looked like it was going to be a lot of fun to colour and it really was.

I rotated the sketch and made the background using various scrap pieces of paper from my stash and a rectangle stitched die and a square stitched die. After colouring the stamp, I fussy cut it out (ugh) and mounted it onto my background using foam tape. I added a bit of Nuvo crystal clear dots for some sparkle.

The sentiment sticker is by Tim Holtz and it made me laugh, as I always want a crazy tower of ice-cream and Hubby says NO because I always spill it, drop it, etc..

I can't wait to see what you do with the sketch, but first check out what the rest of the DT have made over at Sketch Saturday.

Challenge ends 22 June 7pm GMT / 2pm EST

Cx

Catch The Bug GDT: June Anything Goes

Hey,

Happy Saturday to you!

This is my last weekend without Hubby, he'll be back on Tuesday and then my Momma arrives for two weeks on Thursday, super exciting week for me!

This is the start of my third month with the  Catch The Bug team for their Saturday challenge. 

This week we have everyone's fave - Anything Goes.

One of my fave things about Bugaboo stamps is the humor in some of them, like the stamp I chose for today - Chickz - Holy Cluck :)

As always I coloured the image, using Promarkers. I used a new to me die to die-cut the image, I'm a little bit in love with this die, I bought it second-hand and I knew it would get overused. I added a sparkly strip for a bit of interest and used Nuvo glitter drops here and there on the image.

Hope you will be playing along too. Can't wait to see your makes.

Upload your makes at the Catch The Bug blog and check out the rest of the DT makes.

Cx

The Paper Players: Critter Crew...

Hey,

Happy Friday!

I am looking forward to the weekend, I get to see most of the Craftgang this weekend, as we are helping Ava pack up her craft room, as she is moving out of NYC (sob). We are sad, but happy for her.

I was lucky enough to make cut above in last week's Paper Player's challenge.. How lovely is that!

I love the sketch for this week's challenge.

The minute I saw the sketch, I knew what I was going to make..

I used the Avery Elle Critter Crew stamp and die set for my shape. I coloured the Critters using Promarkers and added Spectrum Noir glitter pens and Nuvo drops for shimmer here and there.

The paper background paper is by Stampin' Up and was a gift from my Retro Rubber teamie Debbie Mageed.

I used a scrap for my border and added a sentiment from the Critter Crew set and the Happy Birthday is also by Avery Elle.

A pretty cheerful and fun kids card I feel.

Great way to end the week.

Cx

Top Tips from Crafty Ladies..

Hey,

So one of the great things about going to Crop On The Cape, was being able to hang out with my craft buddies and a) use their stuff and b) get all the great tips.

Now this tip might be obvious to everyone.. but it has literally changed my life..

It seems that most of the ladies buy reams of paper and have them cut to size, so that they are the right size for their card blanks. GENIUS (ok, I know I am late to this party).

I love Neenah bright white, but it is cost prohibitive.. So I found an alternative by Hammermill - it has a slight gloss, but not enough to upset me!

Here is a shot showing a stack of the newly pre-cut panels and the Stampendous Laurel Birch tea-cup stamped and ready to colour..

Can you see how crisp it is? Loving the new paper.

The main card is the tea-cup all coloured and ready to go.

I got my panels cut just a bit bigger than my card blanks, then I can die-cut them (as I did on today's card) if I want to.

The new paper is a dream to colour and pretty much everything I have made since March 21st is using this paper.

Having ready to go right size panels is also a dream come true, it cost me $6 to cut the ream, which I think is a totally worthwhile expense. I'll be taking my watercolour paper in next.

Cx

New Home for the Cats...

Hey,

First full day today in Boston with JT!!

One of my colleagues in London who is also a good friend, is moving into her new home on Saturday.

She reminded me that she would be on the look out for 'her card' LOL.

I specifically bought the BugKittyHomeScene stamp from Bugaboo to make her card. She has x2 Ragdoll cats - Francois and Bianca, and they rule the roost.

Bianca and Francois

I coloured the stamp to a) match the cats colouring and b) my fave red chair that my friend and her husband own (shown above..)

It's all pretty simple, just coloured using Promarkers and Nuvo Crystal drops. I added white gel pen dots to the blanket on the chair.

Bugaboo have a 'All Creatures Great and Small' challenge this week, so I am entering my card.

Cx

Sketch Saturday #500.. Let's get our celebration on!!!

Hey,

Happy Saturday.

Today is celebration time, as the Sketch Saturday team are celebrating our 500th sketch challenge!!

Awesome.

Kindly a lot of our regular sponsors have donated prizes -

A Day for Daisies - $16 Gift Certificate
Crafty Sentiments - 3 digis
Digi Stamp Boutique - £10 Gift Certificate
Fred She Said $10 Gift Certificate
Kitty B - 1 digi
Lemon Shortbread - 1 digi
MMendel Illustrations - digi prize pack
My Besties - 3 digis
Sasayaki Glitter - 1 digi
The Paper Nest Dolls - 3 digis

More info about the prizes and challenge rules can be found on the Sketch Saturday blog post today.

Here's the sketch..

We could choose to use any of the sponsors for today's 500th sketch celebration. I chose A Day For Daisies. I love the 'Skinny Maiden' stamp it is so versatile, sadly I believe it is retired.

I coloured the stamp using Promarkers and added tons and tons of Nuvo Crystal Drops to her dress for some extra special celebration sparkle.

Last year, I bought a second-hand set of really cool sentiment quote stamps by The Ton Stamps and I thought the Coco Chanel one worked really well here.

Both papers I used are scraps and were 'precious'...no more of that in 2018.. Tis the year to use the patterned papers.

Now it's your turn to show us your interpretation of the sketch and join in the celebrations. Don't forget to go over to Sketch Saturday and check out what the rest of the DT have made.

Challenge ends on Friday 2nd February at 7pm GMT / 2pm EST.

Cx

Bugaboo Stamps Birthday Bash: Day 2

Hey,

Happy Monday.

Today it is MLK Day here in the US, so I have spent the day with Jamey and Lisette at Jamey's studio. I really didn't make anything, just spent oodles of time stamping Jamey's stash!!

This week I am playing along with the Bugaboo 8th Birthday Bash! The theme is Birds, Butterflies and Birthdays (I may have missed that slightly yesterday..)

Today for Day 2 there is a sketch -

Great sketch..I love sketches.

I printed and coloured the Birthday Bird 4 stamp and die-cut it out using a stitched circle die.

I love the background paper, it's by Crate Paper and like most of my paper I have had it a while.. (don't judge me, 2018 is my year to use..). I added a plain green strip to make the birdie pop.

I added the sentiment by Avery Elle, which is a perfect fit here and some Nuvo drops for a bit of shimmer.

Love the end result.

I'll be back tomorrow with Day 3 AND the first Retro Rubber Challenge of 2018.

Cx

Christmas Card 2017: Simon Says Stamp Merry & Bright...

Hey,

Happy Monday.

I have had a fun weekend here in London, I got to hang out with JT and her Hubby. Hubby and I also went to lunch yesterday with his family.. always awesome to see our Nephew and Niece and of course the rest of the family ;)

After our fun lunch, I went and hung out with my parents, Ma and I even managed to sneak in a film (officer and a gentlemen).

I realised when I got back from Mexico, that I was running a bit behind with my Christmas card makes and so I dedicated a few evenings to 'churning' out some Christmas cards.

I've actually already posted a few of these 'churn' makes.

Today's cards were made using my December 2016 Simon Says Stamp cardkit, that arrived after all my Christmas cards were made last year.

I love the super cute Reindeer and I thought the fancy Gina Marie die worked really well here.

The banner and the sentiment came with the stamp set.

Really simple and this was the first make in my 'churn' sessions and they re-energised my Christmas card making and I love making cards in small multiples.

Cx

Christmas Card 2017: Sketchy Baubles..

Hey,

Happy Monday.

Today is a BH in England, so my work day will be nice and calm, as the London team are off enjoying themselves ;)

I could not resist this awesome stamp by Woodware when I was home..I already have way too many Christmas stamps, but these baubles really wanted to come home with me.

Yesterday I stamped and watercoloured 6 cards - all the same.

I love the end result, the sparkly Nuvodrops really make them come alive.

I love super quick Christmas makes that I can make a big batch of. Also the MISTI comes in super hand for this kind of tedious repeat stamping. I stamped the image and the sentiment in one go - result!!

Cx

Christmas Card 2017: Festive Robins...

Hey,

Happy Monday from London.

I had a great long weekend with my parents, yesterday was bittersweet as we had a family football match for my Uncle that died recently. He would have loved the turnout of the old guard with the new, it was a great tribute to him.

So I have kicked off my annual Christmas card making.. I start at the beginning of August, as I love to send Christmas cards, so need around 160 cards - A LOT I know, but it's my fave happy mail of the year.

I used to make them all the same, but I have such a large Christmas stamp / die stash it seems silly not to use as much of it as I can.

I managed to make about 21 cards during the first week of August, so this week, whilst I'm in London and scheduling my posts, I'll be showing you most of my makes.

Today's cards were so easy to make, I think I'll be making a few more of these.

The stamp is by Lil' Inker Designs and it comes with various sentiments to use in the banner.

I watercoloured my cards using Distress Inks and an aquabrush and kept the rest of the card simple using a red mat and stitched rectangle dies by MFT.

I added some Nuvo Crystal Drops to the Robin's hat.

Simple, but so pretty!

Cx

CASology: Diamonds...

Hey,

So here I am entering CASology this week, despite what I said yesterday!

I remembered that I had a digital stamp that would be perfect for this challenge...but what about the sentiment?

I went on a hunt for an appropriate sentiment stamp and then I saw my fave Liz Taylor book and it came to me... Big girls need big diamonds - LOL, this is pretty much what I told my Hubby many years ago and when I showed him my card he said 'ugh, Liz Taylor should keep her thoughts to herself'

I put the whole thing together on my computer, making the ring larger than normal to work with the sentiment, then I coloured the ring using a silver Promarker (that I had forgotten I had!) and added some silver moondust Nuvo Crystal Drops to the diamond.

LOVE IT!! And it made me laugh a lot whilst I was making it, I love it when I find myself funny..so sad.

Also exciting news - Hubby and I got published in the NYTimes..

Cx

Make Your Own Background..

Hey,

I was looking around for a different challenge on Sunday and came across Come and Get it Challenge.

This time the challenge is 'Make your own background' - fun times for me..I love backgrounds.

I decided as my current fave Monster stamp keeps rampaging through cityscapes (my fault, not his), that it would be fun to use a map as a base for my background.

I have a whole stack of second hand books I used for art journaling and one of them is an NYC guidebook, so the page I used is actually 'Lower Harlem'.

I covered it with Gesso (creates a base so you can paint, stencil, etc over a glossy piece of paper), dried it with my heat tool, then stenciled the green and blue boxes and the numbers.

I fussy cut the monster and added a little speech bubble die for the sentiment.

The shiny bits you can see on my Monster are Nuvo Drops in Caribbean Sea.

I love the end result, more of this style of background making methinks!

Cx

Fun commission...

Hey,

So recently JT became an Auntie (her Niece is gorgeous), which is lovely, I love being an Aunt.

Her Sister got in touch and asked me to make a 'Will you be my Godmother?' card.

I was intrigued by this concept (a Google search tells me it's very popular) and so obviously said yes.

I decided that I would use a stamp by A Day for Daisies and rooted through what I had and looked at their website. I think their stamps are really sweet and fit the theme of this card perfectly.

I gave Dana a few choices and the image that you see is the one she chose.

I printed the image and the text out on my computer and coloured it using Promarkers, I added a shadow around the fairy girl and some Nuvo Crystal drops for sparkle.

I thought it would be nice to mount it on a Lawn Fawn spotty card blank.

I LOVE it, I did make a different version, which was going to have the text as a banner -

But I didn't love my colouring, the stickles on the wings or the die-cut...so basically I disliked the entire card.

It didn't go to waste though, I cut a load of banners and sentiments and sent it to Dana along with the main one and a few other blank cards, then if she loves it she can use it for something else.

I do like a surprise commission, it's fun to make cards that bring someone's idea / thought to life.

Cx

Happy Mother's Day..

Hey,

In the UK it is Mother's Day today.

I thought it would be nice to make my Ma and my MIL Mother's Day cards.

My Momma was a rockstar when I was having my op and the week after. My MIL was great following the complication with her daily updates.

Making their cards using a mix and match of my MFT flower sets. I love these stamps and I have four of the sets..for now..

The main card is for my Ma, I used Flashy Florals and Tropical Flowers. I stamped and die-cut the flowers first, then die-cut the white panel and set that up in my MISTI. I positioned the flowers and worked out how to stamp the leaves. The sentiment is an old wood stamp and I added clear droplets by Pretty Pink Posh as a finishing touch.

A new thing for me, I only popped up one flower and I think it really works.

Here is the card for my MIL, different for me as it is one layer..

I used Bold Blooms  for all the flowers and leaves on this card and I added the sentiment and the hearts by Lawn Fawn. For a finishing touch I added Nuvo Crystal drops.

I am really pleased with both the cards..I love playing with these stamp sets.

Cx

CASology: Landmarks...Space Needle..

Hey,

Yesterday was a fun day, hanging out with Lisette and Hubby. Today will be mainly me at my desk and also our new bed arrives - yay!

I liked this week's CASology cue card -

I am from London and live in NYC, so landmark's aplenty in both places, but I decided not to be obvious and go to my other 'home' Seattle. It has a special place in my heart, you can read why here.

I decided to use the Kelly Purkey for Hero Arts 'Seattle' stamp set, I love it and I also have the NYC version (there isn't a London one..)

First I die-cut the white panel - love the MFT wonky stitched dies, then I added a teeny bit of blue distress ink to make the Space Needle pop a bit.

The hardest part of this card was fussy cutting the Space Needle - it is SO tiny!!

I stamped the sentiment - 'rocks' I built using these great stamps by Prima. Seattle is from the same set as the Space Needle, but I messed up the 'S' instead of starting again, I added a blue sparkly Thickers 'S'..I think it works..

For my final touch I added some sparkly Nuvo drops.

I think this card will be winging it's way to my friend Michelley, who is responsible for my Seattle love affair.

And just incase you don't know this, the Space Needle was built for the 1962 World's Fair, you can get to the top in just 41 seconds with the super speedy elevators and it is worth it. Even if like me you are terrified of heights!

Cx